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

I do not accept the Deputy's charge. It is important to note that last year, one in two new homes that were purchased were bought by first-time buyers supported by the schemes that this Government brought forward. I will remind the Deputy of those schemes, which include the help-to-buy grant, which is €30,000 of people's own tax back in their pockets to help with the deposit, which the Deputy and his party opposed.

He said his party would scrap that support. The first home scheme has helped 1,700 householders in less than a year to buy their own home, through the State stepping in and taking an equity at a level between the finance available to the purchaser and what is needed to buy the home. The average equity we are giving is €69,000. That does not amount to a second mortgage as Sinn Féin's housing spokesperson said at the time, and it is not inflationary in any way, shape or form. Sinn Féin opposes those two measures that are helping people to buy their own homes. Inexplicably, it also opposes the measure to bring vacant homes back into use and help people to buy them with grants of up to €70,000. Again, Sinn Féin has opposed that.

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