Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister. It is significant that we are talking about very small numbers of homes in both locations and, in fact, in the case of a number of the homes that the Minister cited in Cork, while they may be completed this year, it is unlikely that they will be purchased or occupied until next year. That is, however, a separate matter.

My understanding of the problem that has been experienced with the sale of the property in Kilcarbery in south Dublin is a little more substantive. Individuals had mortgage approval, applied to the local authority and met all of the criteria, but when they went back to the banks, the banks told them that they would not approve mortgage drawdown because they were in an affordable housing scheme. There has been considerable correspondence between elected members, the affected individuals and the local authority. As of today, while we are being told by the local authority that a process is in progress we do not know when that will be resolved.

I would be interested to know, for example, if during the course of the development of the scheme, if the Minister's departmental officials and relevant officials from the Department of Finance been engaging with the Banking and Payments Federation Ireland, BPFI. Could this not have been addressed at that level to ensure that there was no uncertainty? Is the Minister satisfied that in a short period of time the banks will stop refusing people who have otherwise been given mortgage approval for private home purchases?

With respect, again, to Cork, I am trying to understand what the delay was between the substantive completion of the homes and the fact that they will not be put on the market for six or seven months after that period.

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