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

On the other point, it is open to local authorities to purchase homes for social housing. In some parts of the country it is considerably less expensive for the local authority to buy a home than to build it. In general, however, I agree with the Deputy. We would prefer to see local authorities building houses from scratch or buying them from developers than bidding for second-hand homes, often against people who are trying to buy them for themselves.

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