Barry Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Yesterday evening we discussed the Estimates for the Department's spend, 52% of which is on housing. It would be no harm to discuss the issue and outline the means by which the Minister expects to meet the demands placed on the Department by virtue of the announcements made in budget 2015, Construction 2020 and the social housing strategy 2020. We are led to believe the housing crisis which has been allowed to proceed unabated in the past few years can be addressed, despite the fact that it has been exacerbated by the bank veto which continues in the legislation dealing with bank mortgages and which has resulted in 100,000 being on waiting lists. The spend in 2008, 2009 and 2010 was 3.5 times the budget for this year and the next two years. Then 12,500 units were built, but the Minister says he can still achieve the target for this year of 7,500 units, not including the 8,400 provided for through housing assistance payments and transfers from the RAS. In going through the figures it strikes me as unlikely that we can increase supply. That is the big issue. Demand far outweighs supply, which is causing rents to reach exorbitant rates. With no major house building programme in the Department's proposals, there is a great danger the crisis will continue unabated. Will the Minister inform the House how he hopes to meet demand?

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