Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)

I chair the housing forum involving the social partners. It has nothing on the agenda except housing. It is a special initiative and meets every quarter. No one simple solution to this issue exists without increased supply, which is why we have been working on that aspect for some years. Ten or 11 years ago only 22,000 to 23,000 houses were built annually. Last year the figure increased to 77,000. Most people would agree, therefore, that supply currently equals demand and we can expect stability in prices from now on.

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