Mick Wallace (Wexford, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I understood that the original plan behind NAMA was that it would hold properties for a while, rather than flooding the market. Building work is starting again because there is a demand for certain types of property in certain areas where it is not available at the moment. In addition, there is too much property in places where it is not required. However, many large tracts of property that will be sold off will not be bought by Irish people. They will be purchased by foreign investors who will reap benefits at the expense of the Irish people. These people will end up with a lot of rental property, which will give them a monopoly in the game.

The Minister will recall that the really big problem with our building bubble was that a small group of people gained control of most of the land in this city and they land-banked it. They owned over 90% of the land with a potential for development and thus controlled the price of it. Prices went crazy. I ended up paying €5 million for one fifth of an acre because the market was being driven by a small group of people. We now have these people coming in and taking control of the rental market. This is not a normal situation because we have so much property to sell to them.

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