Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The Government will build a number of ladders in terms of creating opportunities for young people who are caught up in a rip-off rental market. We want to liberate young people from that scenario and give them opportunities to buy homes and be in a position to afford houses that will be built. The new equity scheme is targeted and aims to do that, along with the further proposal of a new affordable purchase scheme, with the State directly building affordable houses, and the retained and expanded help-to-buy scheme. A suite of measures is therefore in place. We also want to get people back on site putting bricks and mortar on the ground by tackling planning barriers and Irish Water connection delays. Additional capital money has gone into Irish Water, for example, to get sites ready. That whole infrastructure piece is very important in enabling houses to be built.

The housing crisis needs a broad range of measures to deal with and really get to grips with it comprehensively. Unfortunately, Covid-19 has intervened both last year and this year. The Deputy should be in no doubt, however, as to the Government's determination to do the right thing for people in terms of getting houses.

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