Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Aontú) | Oireachtas source

I do not have long to speak so I will touch on only one element of this debate, one that is often forgotten here, namely, that the free market is the space in which much of this problem will be resolved. I hear this from Fine Gael and from the media. This assertion presupposes that there is a free market in the sector, which is rubbish. There is massive distortion in the housing market, as there is in the insurance market and in the beef market. Fine Gael is the architect of much of the distortion and dysfunction that has been created. One of the main ways in which Fine Gael has created dysfunction is by rolling out the red carpet to the international vulture funds. I sat in front of Deputy Noonan four years ago and asked him about trying to get more supply into the market. He stated that houses were not expensive enough. The red carpet was rolled out to the international vulture funds at that time in order to increase the price of houses and improve the balance sheets of the banks. This was achieved by an extremely generous taxation policy and light-touch regulation of the vulture funds and international investors. It is not just me saying this. The UN condemned Ireland for allowing multinational vulture funds buy up vast swathes of properties and charge sky-high rents in respect of them. Cash-rich funds are buying up entire apartment blocks and housing estates and that, in part, is leading to high rents. Until the Government deals with the dysfunction to which I refer, it will have continue to experience major difficulties.

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