Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The 18,000 or so new apartments and homes that I referred to do not include student apartments. If one adds the student apartments to those 18,000, the figure increases by 2,000. If one adds some of the ghost estates that are still being brought back into use and vacant properties being brought back into use, the number of new places to live being built will increase to well over 20,000. Student accommodation is freeing up other accommodation. Students who are staying in student accommodation might otherwise be living in overcrowded accommodation in the private rented sector, with their parents or in digs. Any form of additional accommodation is welcome.

One thing we definitely have to do is reform the planning guidelines. We have done this in the case of apartments because it should not be more profitable to build student accommodation than it is to build one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments for those who are not students to buy.

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