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

The Deputies have asked quite a range of questions. First, I point out to Deputy Boyd Barrett that the Government is not outsourcing housebuilding. Some 9,500 of the 12,500 social housing properties to be built this year will be built by local authorities and approved social housing bodies. There will be very large social housing provision this year in terms of building. The Government is not outsourcing that at all, contrary to what the Deputy asserted.

I also point out that there is no green light to evict people via this legislation. It is wrong to suggest that there is such a green light. The Deputy said the same things the last time this legislation was introduced in terms of the scale and how he presented the argument. His predictions did not come to pass. The Residential Tenancies Bill 2020 came into operation on 24 October. As the Deputy knows, it sought to mitigate the impact of Covid-19 on tenants to support the Government's efforts to restrict the movement of people in order to suppress the spread of the virus while level 5 restrictions were in place. There was very strong legal advice given to the Minister in terms of the parameters around which the legislation could be grounded and put into law free of any potential successful legal challenge. That was an important aspect that the Minister simply had to take on board. The legislation, broadly speaking, has proved to be effective and its extension is important.

The target is for 12,750 social houses to be built this year. Unquestionably, the three months of level 5 restrictions due to Covid has reduced output. The Government has only been in office since last July but it has made very significant commitments. Deputy Boyd Barrett referred to not one house being provided. A significant number of voids were brought back in his council area under the dramatic initial programme taken by the Minister and funded by the Government last July. It brought close to 3,000 social houses back into play, yet the Deputy comes in with propaganda about not one house being provided etc. We will do everything we can to build social housing and get them built in 2021 at far higher levels. Obviously, Covid has impacted on that. The Deputies know that, but choose to ignore the impact of Covid on housing construction in the first three months of the year.

On the issues raised by Deputy Cian O'Callaghan, the Minister has established a homelessness task force. He has regular meetings with the NGOs in relation to homelessness and in terms of the quality issue, but also the provision issue, particularly during the winter, when he was very anxious that we would provide as much capacity as we possibly could. I take on board the Deputy's comments and the assertions of quite a number of homeless persons that they feel safer sleeping on the streets than in emergency accommodation. We should not be in a position where people feel that way in terms of their accommodation. I accept that point. We are consistently trying to work to address it.

In general response to some of the contributions that have been made, I make the point that ideology will not build houses.

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