Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I understand that this process takes time and that multiple agencies are involved. However, with a 15% purchase rate to date and a 30% bid rate, it seems the Department will not meet the target of 1,600 homes by 2020, although I hope it does. If Sinn Féin can assist in any way with any local authority, we will do so. Where local authorities are not expressing an interest, is the Minister satisfied that it is for legitimate reasons? Some might not express an interest for very good reasons like the property being in the wrong location but some might use spurious arguments about an already existing over supply of social housing which may not be valid. All I am asking is that the Minister, if he has not already done so, ensures that where properties are not being pursued, it is for the right and appropriate reasons. Every one of these properties that is purchased, as the Minister knows, can potentially get a family or a single person out of emergency accommodation. In that context, greater urgency is required in ensuring that the Department meets, if not exceeds, the target of 1,600 by 2020.

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