John Paul Phelan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The housing needs in rural Ireland are different than those in urban Ireland, it is fair to say, but it is equally wrong to say anything other than that the population of rural Ireland continues to increase.

In regard to local authorities, Members should look at what is being done in Cork City Council and what has been done for several years in Louth County Council. This goes back to what Deputy Scanlon said earlier in regard to under-utilised properties. Those local authorities have taken policy decisions to purchase actively and compulsorily properties that have lain idle for years. In terms of the delivery of numbers, it is certainly not going to solve our social housing issues, but it will do huge work in regard to improving not just the communities and the physical look, but also the way of life of people in some of those large market towns across the country.

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