Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Gabhaim buíochas le achan duine a labhair sa díospóireacht inniu, go háirithe na Teachtaí a thug tacaíocht don rún os ár gcomhair. I listened to the words of the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage and, to say the God's honest truth, if the situation were not as serious and if so many people had not had their hopes, dreams and aspirations dashed as a result of Government policy, they would be laughable. Here is a Fianna Fáil Minister, himself an investor at the peak of the boom in regard to one of these REITs, talking about Sinn Féin and others in opposition engaging in slash and burn politics. This is a Minister whose party's policies, as has been well established, fuelled the housing crisis. Fianna Fáil's policies in the aftermath of the financial crisis slashed and burned the incomes of people right across the State and, unfortunately, left many people with no option but to emigrate from the country in which they were born.

The Minister lectures Sinn Féin without coming forward with any proposal of his own. He took issue with our opposing the shared equity scheme. Let me point out that we are very proud to oppose that scheme.

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