Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

If the Deputy can control himself for a moment, I suggest he look at the measures the Government has brought in. We brought in the winter eviction ban. As I have said already, we will review that ban but the review will be based on sound legal advice. We have provided a €500 renters' credit and will provide a credit worth €1,000 per renter this year. We introduced emergency planning powers, which Deputy Ó Broin and his colleagues did not support. We are focusing on modern methods of construction to ramp up delivery through our local authorities on sites that have not been activated for years. We have also ramped up the tenant in situscheme. We will continue to do that. There is no capital restriction or other restriction of any kind on councils in activating that scheme. I have written to them directly and spoken to every director of service and chief executive. Indeed, next week, I will be convening another housing summit, at which this will top of the agenda. The Deputy is entitled to his opinions but he is not entitled to twist the facts or to fail to recognise what has been done so far. The fact is that he has continued, at every single stage, to oppose measures that Government has brought forward. The clearest example of this is that of emergency planning powers to activate planning permissions, something which is included in the motion. The Deputy's party did not support the introduction of such powers.

On social housing vacancy, in the last three years, we have brought more than 8,600 vacant social homes back into use. We need to improve how social homes are managed and to ensure that new tenants get into those homes much more quickly than they have heretofore.

There is no plan from Sinn Féin or anyone else that is comparable with Housing for All or that has the investment Housing for All has to ensure that we are ramping up supply of affordable, social and private housing. We need to be very careful about measures we take that could further exacerbate the issues within the private rental sector. Everyone understands that or should understand it. The measures that the Government takes must be legal and carefully calibrated. We will review the situation with regard to the winter eviction ban in a very timely fashion.

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