Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the newly announced affordable house purchase scheme. It is a really important element of everything the Minister is trying to do in Rebuilding Ireland. What detail has the Minister in respect of lands that Kildare County Council might have available for the affordable house purchase scheme? Does he have a projection of how many houses might become available in County Kildare as part of it? Affordable housing is becoming available and I think the scheme applies to a value of up to €320,000 in Kildare. The Minister might clarify that.

The focus in the media has very largely been on homelessness and the different challenges the Minister faces in his Department. However, I have a lot of constituents who are working and who aspire to buy and live in their own home in the future. That is not always attainable. The affordable purchase scheme will allow those people to aspire to own their own homes within the communities where they were born and raised, with all the family supports that go with that. It is really important for us in Kildare, where we have seen a very significant increase in house price pressure. I very much welcome the scheme and look forward to seeing it being rolled out in Kildare.

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