Maurice Quinlivan (Limerick City, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I am not suggesting for a minute to the Minister of State that the IDA is causing or contributing to the housing crisis but there is a problem around housing. Unfortunately the Government has completely failed to stabilise the housing market or to build enough social and affordable housing to meet the needs of the people. That is the problem I am raising. It is a sad state of affairs that due to the shambolic housing policy of the Government we have to be concerned about not having enough dwellings to house new workers and their families for the jobs that are being created here. I understand that we are competing with the rest of the world for jobs and as I stated in my initial contribution I welcome every single job that is approved, whether that is for Dublin or for the regions. I am not objecting whatsoever to the FDI job announcements as they provide excellent opportunities for people here but there is a concern that there will be no places for people to work.

In addition, many of these FDI jobs are very well paid, which again is great news. This means, however, that these workers can outbid other low paid workers for the few houses that are available to rent, putting further pressures on low income families. It is crazy that the Government has allowed this to escalate to such a point. What interactions have the Minister's Department had with the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government about this specific issue? Have business and the IDA concerns about the lack of housing for workers? Is there any incentive in that regard?

See this speech in context