Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

There are more than 70 recommendations in the construction initiative published by the Government, and through the Cabinet sub-committee the Taoiseach will, on a month-by-month basis, ensure these initiatives are introduced and developed. The Deputy is aware that the housing market and the building industry have been in crisis for many years and that they constitute an impaired sector of the economy. Many good builders have had to go out of business. Deputy Wallace understands that there are fundamental rules but, based on comments they have made, many other Deputies do not understand these rules. First, no builder builds a house unless he knows he can sell it for more than it cost to construct it. We have only barely passed that point in some areas in the past 12 months, but have not reached it yet in some parts of the country. Second, a builder must finance the build.

This initiative is not a demand-side initiative, because we are not applying it to second-hand houses. If we introduce this, it will be for new houses only. The initiative in the United Kingdom has increased the supply of new houses outside London by one-third in the two-year period since it was introduced. It is a supply-side initiative, not a demand-side one.

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