Brian Stanley (Laois-Offaly, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for her reply. I acknowledge some good work has been done in respect of NAMA houses and houses in unfinished estates with the money used for safety purposes. However there is a problem with the houses themselves and not the infrastructure in that a promise was made that many housing units would come on-stream for social housing. If I heard the Minister of State correctly, approximately 1,400 such units have come on stream to date. The problem is that the social leasing schemes cost thousands of euro every year for each unit and this is money which goes back to the developer or investor. The other point to remember is that another cost is being cooked up with regard to long-term leases, as such units must be returned in perfect condition. In effect, this is acting as a second bailout for developers. Moreover, it is pushing up the prices of rent, which sometimes are artificially high because NAMA properties are not available for rent.

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