Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)

In respect of the potential yield of 8,900 affordable housing units, the Taoiseach remarked that some of them are under construction. Will he inform the House on the precise number under construction? He claimed that this was an additional number and that he did not want it entangled with the other substantial investment in affordable housing. Is it not the case that only 163 affordable houses were built last year? Is it not the case that when the Government changed the law on this issue at the end of 2002, it handed back 16,000 affordable housing sites to builders? Will he agree that 163 units of affordable housing is absurdly and ridiculously inadequate and a paltry contribution in terms of housing need in that category? The entire social and affordable housing provision is distressfully inadequate in meeting the needs of people in those areas.

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