Marc Ó Cathasaigh (Waterford, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State. On the timeline for establishment, at the outset of his contribution the Minister of State used the term "very soon" and midway through it he referred to the end of this year. He might be able to give me some additional, hard and fast timelines on that.

It strikes me that a suite of Government measures to do with housing hangs together on this. One is clearly Housing for All. Another is the climate Act, which is of central importance. The Circular Economy Bill 2021, which acknowledges and values the embodied carbon within all objects in our society but buildings in particular, is also important. There is also the town centres first initiative which is seeking to bring life back into our town centres.

This will require not only new construction skills but also the revitalisation of old ones and some of those lacking in the sector. We will need the full range of skills available in order to bring properties, particularly heritage and vacant properties, back into use in our town centres.

See this speech in context