Bertie Ahern (Dublin Central, Fianna Fail)

They have examined what is happening, but I do not believe that there are any innovative methods on the horizon. What is on the horizon is that we must invest more resources in social housing. That is happening, but one will never achieve the speed that one might wish. Local authorities have been hard pressed this year. Questions were asked here the other day, and they were criticised for not spending their allocations. I know the Minister was very agitated at that both last year and this year. Voluntary housing put in a large amount of money, and we received a report from Mr. Des Geraghty and his colleagues on the affordable housing initiative. The State is still paying out large sums, and it might be looked at differently. That may not be possible, but the question of fresh thinking in this area arises.

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