Dr. Ronan Lyons:

I feel quite strongly about this. I know I am not asking the Deputy questions and that he is asking me questions, which is fine, but I encourage him to read the minority report. If he can find anything in it that is in any way connected to the idea that there are vested interests who want to keep housing prices high, he will find it is literally untrue. As I know from having been involved in how it came about and in writing and submitting it, I can state it was done from legal and social perspectives. One can read the legal bit. The social perspective concerned the question of how best we align the laws and the Constitution with the goals of the wider commission report. We had a disagreement with the majority in the commission, which is fine, but in no way was there a question of how we could limit housing production to keep rents and prices high. Rather, it was a question of how best to achieve systemic change, through constitutional change if necessary, to bring about a healthy housing system. I encourage members to read the minority report. I will be happy to talk one to one with the Deputy about how the report came to be and where our heads were at in terms of the recommendation. I am willing to take criticism or comments on the recommendation we made but it is not fair in any way to connect the minority report with vested interests in some sort of vague sense.