Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour) | Oireachtas source

As far as the provision of local authority housing is concerned, the Minister, Deputy Howlin, has announced two additional stimulus packages which provide for an additional €100 million for social housing. I can go through the detail of that if the Deputy wishes.

The Deputy specifically raised an issue with the rent supplement. As he knows, rents are increasing, partly owing to the supply situation. The answer to that is not simply to raise the rent supplement every time there is an adjustment in rent because doing that leads to a never-ending problem with rents continuing to increase. We know from previous experience that as the rent supplement increases the rents increase to meet it.

The Minister for Social Protection has already provided arrangements for flexibility in the application of rent supplement, particularly where people are at risk of losing their home. It is my understanding that arrangements are already being put in place to allow for flexibility to be exercised by community welfare officers in the application of rent supplement.

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