Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Enough of the Minister's spoofing. Here are a couple of home truths. He has been in the Department for a couple of years. House prices are going through the roof. Entire generations have been locked out of homeownership under his watch. Rents are spiralling out of control. They are increasing dramatically in many counties, which means people are becoming homeless. Homelessness is nearly back at record levels. That is the Minister's plan and it is not working.

I have the confidential document to hand about Croí Cónaithe that he has not been published. It is not about reducing the market value for the buyers. The cost of a three-bedroom apartment is to be €445,000. What planet is the Minister living on? Which families, workers and ordinary people can afford that amount? To whom is the cheque written to? It is written to the developers, to the amount of €144,000. It is straight out of the Fianna Fáil playbook during the times of the Galway tent. We know who the plans are working for. They are not working for ordinary families and workers. They are not working for renters or the generation who are locked out of homeownership. What the Minister needs to do is come to his senses, scrap that plan, invest the €450 million into local authorities, approved housing schemes, and build affordable homes for workers and families.

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