Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

It is a little bizarre that the Department which I do not exonerate is expected to come to the assistance of local authorities which have large stocks of social housing and large incomes deriving from the rents paid. It is my experience as someone directly involved in voluntary housing provision that we do not have to turn to the Department or the local authority to seek funds to refurbish our houses when tenancies are being renewed. The fact that the Minister of State is doing what she is doing indicates that local authorities are not prudently and effectively managing their stock in so far as they have to turn to her to seek funding. If they filled the vacancies expeditiously and did not have houses lying idle, leading to a scenario in which they are vandalised, and if there was effective on the ground management, with prudent management of stock maintenance and the funds generated from rents, surely this operation would be self-financing. I am aware of many houses being refurbished and because there was a delay in their reallocation, they were vandalised again.

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