Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

This Government believes in home ownership. In his earlier contribution, the Deputy bemoaned the fact that the average age of someone buying his or her first home has increased to 38. I have been raising this issue for a number of years but the difference is that we are doing something about it. A shared equity scheme is part of the Affordable Housing Bill, which will come to the House this evening and which I hope the Social Democrats will support. This shared equity scheme is focused on those who need it most. It will work. It has been passed by the Central Bank, has received approval and will help those caught in an affordability trap by helping them bridge that affordability gap with the State taking equity in their home. The State will take equity in direct build affordable homes built through local authorities such as the scheme in Donabate of more than 1,200 homes, 200 of which are social and 238 of which are affordable, passed by Fingal County Council a number of weeks ago but which the Deputy's party voted against.

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