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

Approximately €3.3 billion has been provided for housing, a 24% increase on budget 2020. Clearly, in the first three months of the year Covid has restricted output. That is obvious, because of the level 5 lockdown and our decision to reduce mobility. That has had an impact on the first three months of the year.

The €3.3 billion available is the highest investment in housing by any Government in a single year. Some €500 million in additional capital has been provided for the delivery of 12,750 new social homes for people on the social housing list. That is positive.

Of that, 9,500 will be direct builds. The Deputy has picked one particular scheme, which represents a minority of what will be provided, and presented it as the main plank of Government policy, which it is not. The main plank is 9,500 of 12,750, which will be new builds through approved housing bodies and through local authorities. I agree that we need to get output up and we have to use as many mechanisms as we can to get output up for social housing.

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