Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour) | Oireachtas source

The issue we have just been discussing would not in any way be solved by the amendment, which provides only that the money that comes in from the sale of a house under Part 3 shall be retained by the local authority for the specific purpose of providing further accommodation. It is a limited amount of money and not the kind of funding needed to address the entire social housing need. Nevertheless, a general discussion has arisen in this context.

Deputies Catherine Murphy and Tommy Broughan raised the issue of the NESC report. It is not my report but that body's, and it was submitted for consideration. We need to consider all of the various possibilities and options, and NESC is a recognised body which has representations across a variety of sectors. The fact that it has published a report does not mean I will implement all of it, however. It includes ideas on social renting, etc., that are new to Ireland, and we must at least look at them. However, I would much prefer to be building local authority houses through the local authority and not-for-profit sectors. I am not particularly enthusiastic about private entities becoming involved at all. This is for discussion, and I am delighted that so many people here have actually read it. There are other documents coming down the line, including from the Housing Agency, which is doing work on the lower end of the rental market. Other documents will be feeding into the public debate, which is a necessary one.

I will not go back into attacking Fianna Fáil about the bank guarantee, but Deputy Broughan made the point that the general Government deficit includes provision of direct funding for housing. Unfortunately, as Minister of State with responsibility for housing, I must live with that. We have targets to reach. I do not want to waste too much time on this, but I note that I have simply not had the funding to deliver a large-scale social housing programme.

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