Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy Ó Snodaigh for raising this question. This is an area where significant effort has been put in by the Minister, Deputy Kelly, and the Minister of State, Deputy Coffey. No doubt that sad death triggered a concerted response and we have seen an improvement in those numbers. However, Deputy Ó Snodaigh is correct that this needs a sustained strategy and that is what the Minister, Deputy Kelly, has put in place. The Minister has now put in place a social housing strategy which will develop 35,000 extra social units over the next number of years and he is determined to see a very significant increase in the availability of social housing. At the same time the Government has, through its construction strategy, sought to improve the private sector's response to the growing housing needs.

There are encouraging signs of a growing level of activity in the housing market. However, work must continue. The Government is rolling out detailed strategies on both construction and social housing. These are very important initiatives. As to the role of rent controls, in the past where price controls were put in place, it did not tend to stimulate supply and this must be factored into any consideration of such a response. If one wants to see more private rented accommodation, because there has been a decline in the availability of rental accommodation, one must consider the reason for the existence of supply bottlenecks. That is the primary focus of attention but the Government will keep all options under review as it deals with the development of both the social housing strategy and the construction strategy.

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