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

Let me remind Members that for almost a decade the State had no money to build houses. In those years the banks had no money to lend to developers, first-time buyers or any buyer. The construction sector collapsed and workers emigrated. Parents also actively discouraged their children from considering courses such as engineering or apprenticeships. In a normal eight to ten-year period one would expect 200,000 new houses to be built. That is the level we are trying to achieve to catch up.

To suggest that can be done overnight is completely disingenuous. Just like we fixed our massive unemployment crisis through the Action Plan for Jobs, we will fix the housing sector through Rebuilding Ireland. We will fix it for our families, workers, pensioners and children. We are doing it in a co-ordinated way through Rebuilding Ireland, Project Ireland 2040 and the national planning framework. As we work through the finer detail of the regional plans, we will get it right. It is not just about building lots of houses really quickly, albeit we need that.

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