Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister's ambitious plans and I have no doubt but that he will see them through, and it is in everyone's interest that he does so. Each local authority, with particular reference to the numbers on the local authority housing waiting lists, needs to be asked the simple question, how quickly can it deliver, and how many units can it deliver in the shortest possible time? The six-month period is a great idea. That is what we need. All the discussions I have had with local authorities - and I am sure my colleagues on all sides of the House have had similar discussions - are vague, and they say it will take two or three years before units are built. This problem is now, not in two or three years' time. Every effort needs to be put into achieving the targets in the shortest possible time, and I know the Minister will ensure that. It will have a dual benefit in that it will reduce the pressure on people who do not own their homes, homeless people in particular, and it will reduce the price of houses generally. House prices in this country are way beyond those of most of our EU and European colleagues.

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