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

I will get to the nub of the question I specifically asked. A sense of immediacy and urgency is required to deal with the terrible situation that exists on the streets of Dublin and many other parts of the country. This morning we heard people talking about living in tents. We heard a woman on the radio some weeks ago who was living in a hotel. A total of 1,500 families are in emergency accommodation. A sense of immediacy and urgency is required to address this issue.

Some weeks ago, the Taoiseach and the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government said the 150 units that had been ordered would be in place before Christmas. The Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, Deputy White, is now telling me it will be up to four months. At this stage, that means it will go on to February. Is the Minister sure, even at that, where they will be located and whether planning permission will have been secured for them in order that they can be in place within four months? It is highly unlikely, given how the procurement and planning process works and the length of time it takes. Deputy White should know that as well as I do.

That being the case, what can the Government do at this stage, further to what the Minister said on television last Sunday and what he and the Taoiseach have said in the House previously? Will the Government bring forward emergency legislation to allow for planning permission to be more forthcoming than it is under the normal procurement process? That is the sort of immediacy and urgency that needs to be brought to the House to address this emergency issue in real terms. Some 130,000 people are on the waiting list, but there were 90,000 when the Government came to office. Fully 2,600 homes throughout the country are empty.

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