Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Sinn Féin brought forward this motion. To be honest, and this has been the discussion of late, the people out in the country are confused because Sinn Féin has been backing this Government on literally everything it has done. I refer to the crony initiatives that were done. While its Deputies get up every two weeks and shout about housing, they have never built a house. I do not know what is wrong. I go back to the days when Hallys, the builders in Ardfinnan, built houses all over the country. The company put 50 men in the back of a lorry and built houses, and the Government paid it to build them. We have lost our way completely. Fianna Fáil did promise to build 50,000 affordable homes before, but this was like everything in its manifesto and everything the Tánaiste, Deputy Martin, says. It is like snow off a ditch as the promises go. He keeps fooling the people. He is lucky, but I do not know how he does it.

I have a specific question for the Minister of State. I met representatives of the integration section of the Department of the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman, the OPW and Sisk when 82 modular homes were being built in Clonmel. After a meeting lasting one and a half hours, they assured me the modular houses were going to cost €200,000. I said that was an outrageous price for something that should cost €70,000. The response was that there were land costs and everything else. Now, though, we are finding out that they are costing €443,000. It beggars belief how this could happen. How could we spend this amount of money on modular homes, little tin buildings with some timber, that I would say will not last 40 years? We have definitely lost our way. Cad a dhéanfaimid feasta gan adhmad? Tá deireadh na gcoillte ar lár. Does the Minister of State know what this song is? The Government has lost its way in so many areas to have allowed this to happen.

I was given a guarantee. What good is there in me meeting representatives of the Department of integration, the public face of it, and the OPW, when I am told something that is baloney? The price has turned out to be more than double what I was told it would be and that was only three or four months ago. I sat down with those people and they assured me at the time. What kind of accountability do we have? I rest my case. It is time for the Government to leave office and let someone else run it.

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