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

She has been a long-standing activist on public and social issues. I think the people of Dublin Bay South recognised that and reflected it in their affirmation of her role. I have no doubt from her previous parliamentary experience that the Deputy will add value to Dáil Éireann. I also pay tribute to her party for its success in the by-election. No doubt we will have the occasional engagement and debate on issues pertaining to society and the future of our country.

Regarding Deputy McDonald's charge, her portrayal of the Government's housing policy is flawed and wrong in its assertions. The decision last week related to social homes and social housing. Without question, the Government’s focus has been on the need to build social and affordable housing directly. In fairness, any objective look back over the past month will show a Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage who has been very active here on several fronts. Last week alone, I refer to his decision regarding reducing rent and ensuring it cannot increase in the future beyond the rate of inflation. It was a highly significant move the Deputy chose to ignore. I also point to the range of affordability measures in this regard, including legislation concerning the Land Development Agency, affordable homes and shared equity. I note the Deputy railed against it for the last several weeks but then ended up voting for the Affordable Housing Bill 2021.

Therefore, it is very difficult to take the Deputy seriously. She came in here week after week and attacked the Minister for a variety of measures, which her party subsequently supported and voted for. The Deputy spoke about taking this issue seriously and understanding the nature of housing. In reality, I do not think it is possible to lay that charge against any party in this House, given the record of the Deputy's party in opposing so many housing projects which were shovel-ready and ready to go. Sinn Féin opposed 975 homes in Clondalkin, 30% of which were social houses. The party opposed 500 homes in Tallaght, of which 80% would have been social and affordable houses. In addition, it opposed 278 homes in Swords. More recently, the party voted against 1,200 social, affordable and private homes in Ballymastone, Donabate. That development would have delivered 238 social homes and 238 affordable homes at prices between €250,000 and €270,000. Sinn Féin also opposed the Land Development Agency Bill, which is about affordability and getting State delivery of both social and affordable homes. The party spoke out and railed against the shared equity scheme, which will help people to buy houses at an affordable level and opposed the help-to-buy scheme, which so far has helped 22,000 first-time buyers. The Deputy's party and its spokesperson said we did not need it and have called for the scheme to be scrapped.

I do not get any sincerity in the Deputy's protestations about housing and I do not get any substance either. I get a sense that the Deputy's object and mission is to exploit the housing crisis for electoral gain only and is not interested in solutions around housing. The Deputy and her party are interested in exploiting the housing problem. I can say this much in that regard. In the context of the housing for all strategy, which the Minister is working on and will publish, our overwhelming focus will be on the direct building of social houses. We are in transition now. We simply cannot turn off the tap, when social houses can be provided through this leasing arrangement in the short term to provide for 2,400 families who can avail of social housing through this model. It is not at all the ideal model and that is why it will be seen that the focus is coming off of it. However, it is not the main focus now and it never has been. The main focus is on direct build and on the State getting directly involved in building and providing affordable homes for people who need to get access to homes they can afford in cities and towns across the country.

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