Eoghan Murphy (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I might need the time to reply to the questions from the Deputies. As we come out of the lockdown period we can look through the five phases and the important dates where housing is concerned. The first is 18 May when we hope to see the construction sites opening again. The Deputy is correct that it must happen in a safe way. The new standard for the operation of house building sites has been a work in progress for a number of weeks. It is being led from the Department of the Taoiseach since it became part of the larger construction process. Initially it was going to just be house building sites but there is a bigger thing planned. I am sure the Health and Safety Authority has been involved in that, as have others, because it is very important that workers feel safe going back to work to do the type of work we need them to do.

We hope that in the phasing period from 9 June we can look at estate agents and letting agents being back to work more fully. In terms of social housing, we were able to get back on site under the emergency measures. I made the argument that this was emergency work. These are houses that were almost complete. It is approximately 1,000 homes that with a few weeks work would be able to take people out of overcrowded homes, off the housing list and out of emergency accommodation. Those houses are being completed as we speak.

The rent freeze and the notice to quit freeze will end on 27 June. A decision has to be made in advance of that on whether they are to be extended. The Deputy referred to garden centres. We want allotments to be back open as well on 18 May. Important work is happening in that regard so people can go outdoors to look after the vegetable patch and everything else they do in their allotments.

Deputy Niall Collins spoke about local authority building and standard designs. Standard designs, as had occurred in the past, were proposed but I did not want them to be too standard. We must be mindful of the receiving environment where we are building homes-----

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