Réada Cronin (Kildare North, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I appreciate the Minister of State's reply, particularly when he went off-script from the script the Department gave him. Sometimes people are told it is a ventilation matter. They are told to make sure their vents are not blocked. In many cases they are not blocked. That is not the cause of the mould. Earlier I spoke of a tenant who reported her leaks 16 months ago to Kildare County Council. The contractor came out and told her the roof needed to be replaced. The council went out a year later, which was a couple of months ago, and replaced part of the roof, not all of it. The plaster is coming off the walls in some places. The exposed brickwork is still wet. Windowsills are swollen from water and they are rotten. The windows need replacing as well. I appreciate what the Minister of State said. I hope he will take it on board because I do not believe the Department is taking this very seriously. We have to look after our council stock. As landlords, local authorities are responsible to make sure that they are providing decent accommodation. Will the Minister of State try to get a circular out to the local authorities to tell them they have to make sure that their accommodation is up to scratch?

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