Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Ní raibh. Bhí mé istigh anseo ag déanamh mo chuid oibre. As I said, it is very important that we maintain the standard of housing.

The PRTB system requires urgent reform. When I was Minister for Social Protection, I worked with the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government to try to ensure registration of all properties took place before rather than after letting and that every property would be required to have a report before it was let stating it met adequate standards and had an adequate BER rating. With so many people living in rented housing, it is vital we ensure they are living in properties of an adequate standard. Furthermore, if we were to insist on full registration with the PRTB before letting, we could ensure there was full compliance with Revenue Commissioners' requirements also.

I refer to the issue of Traveller housing. Ordinary people find it difficult to rent housing. There is an amazing and unprecedented housing crisis. Travellers, however, face even greater problems owing to the huge social prejudice against them. One of the aspects of the Government's tenure of office that shocks me is the constant reduction of money for Traveller housing. If the Minister checks his Department's records, he will see that there have been disproportionate cuts in that sector. I refer him to the latest work of Fr. Micheal McGreal which shows that the Traveller community suffers the greatest apartheid, as he calls it, in our society. Instead of trying to do something about it, the Minister has added tremendously to this policy.

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