Batt O'Keeffe (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)

I welcome the opportunity to respond to all of those who have contributed to this important debate. We have heard that the options introduced by way of amendment in 2002 have acted in a way that has positively affected the capacity of Part V to deliver many more units than had been the case prior to their adoption. The suggestion seems to be that if everything had been left as it was, there would be more units on the ground today than is actually the case. We have also heard that ordinary aspiring home owners and tenants have been the losers in some design manipulated by vested interests and supported by the Government. Nothing could be further from the truth.

I reiterate the Government's commitment to the provision of social and affordable housing and housing in general. Furthermore, as the Minister of State, Deputy Noel Ahern, said last night, the review of the 2000 Act was promised in the agreed programme for Government. It was done to ensure that Part V was meeting all the objectives relating to social and affordable housing. As it stood at that time, the provisions of Part V were clearly inflexible, overly bureaucratic and simply were not achieving the desired result of improving the supply of social and affordable housing. This was not solely the Government's view, but also of those who had a stake in the success of Part V. Whatever about twin woes of inflexibility and bureaucracy, we could not but react appropriately to the obvious. I am satisfied that the right move was made at that time and that we are now seeing the yield from the amendment.

Some criticism was made of the strategy to swap State lands for ready-built housing units. The land swap strategy has been used to date on three sites and has yielded almost 500 affordable housing units. Phase one of Harcourt Terrace has given us 193 units, phase two of Harcourt Terrace, 215 units, and Brock House, 89 units. One of the main advantages of using this strategy is that it enables a much quicker delivery of affordable housing. With regard to pricing, in the case of the Harcourt Terrace phase one land swap, 193 units were successfully completed at prices that range from €142,000 to €189,000. The original site of 0.4 acres would have taken a number of years to develop and would have delivered just 30 apartments. The yield from the other swapped sites has resulted in a similar favourable outcome.

Last night, some Deputies referred to the soaring waiting lists. In fact, the 2005 assessment of housing needs identified 43,684 households in need of social housing, which is a decrease of 9.7% on the level of need identified in 2002, when the figure was 48,413. The 2005 assessment was the most rigorous to date as it required all the local authorities to collect detailed data relating to all households on their waiting lists. For the first time, an IT framework was developed which enabled the Department to analyse data in respect of all households in much greater depth. The assessment was further evidence that Government measures introduced in recent years have been successful in boosting the supply of housing to meet the unprecedented demand.

House completions in Ireland are at the highest level in Europe vis-À-vis population at approximately 19 units per 1,000. The introduction of the five-year action plans in 2004, covering all social and affordable housing programmes by local authorities, provides a strong basis for a strategic and measured approach to housing investment and improved funding provisions will continue the upward trajectory of output of recent years.

Some Deputies also commented on the apparent low level of social housing in this country. I stress the word "apparent" because while the overall percentage of social housing is low in comparison to other countries, this can be attributed to the uniquely high level of private home ownership in Ireland.

I am aware of some instances where Part VIII proposals for social and affordable housing are being brought forward by local authorities but rejected by councillors in those authorities dominated by the Opposition parties.

Reference was made to the need for rights-based housing. However, it is not considered appropriate to legislate for a specific right to housing. This could distort the operation of the current housing programmes and priorities. These have been resourced in accordance with the democratic decisions of Dáil Éireann, the Government and local authorities and have been effective in delivering increased output.

Part V is not the only mechanism used to provide housing for lower-income groups. It is anticipated that the needs of 14,000 households will be met this year through the full range of social and affordable housing measures. Additional investment in social and affordable housing measures between 2007 and 2009, which was outlined in the new partnership agreement, Towards 2016, will enable the needs of approximately 60,000 households to be met over that period. Among the new and developing measures is the introduction of the rental accommodation scheme. The Government is very happy that this is delivering quality accommodation at a reasonable rent.

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