Ken O'Flynn (Cork North-Central, Independent Ireland Party) | Oireachtas source

I congratulate the Minister on his position and wish him the best of luck. I genuinely mean that.

Today, we had the Taoiseach on his feet telling us that the Government's biggest commitment was to housing, and that the biggest commitment of his party and the other parties that are in government, including the Independents, was to housing, yet where are they? It is an empty Chamber. Where is the Government that is meant to be listening to us?

We are looking at a 10% increase in homelessness in the past year, with 15,000 people in emergency accommodation, and 4,500 of those are children. This is not a housing crisis, but a housing emergency, and it is about time that this Government recognised that and declared it. We are looking at increases in property prices at 8.1% at the moment. Independent Ireland's TDs and councillors have people coming to our constituency offices and asking us not to get them on the housing list or make a representation to the council, but to get them auctioneers who will listen to them so they can rent a house privately. They have €2,500 to spend and they cannot find accommodation. That is a housing emergency.

We talk about supply and demand. If this Government and its predecessor had listened to Michael O'Flynn - one of the biggest property developers in the country - when he said five years ago that we should start rezoning land and lower the price of the site to 10%, as it was in the eighties when my mother and father, at the age of 18 and 21, could go off and purchase a house because the site price was 10%. Now we are looking at an average of 40% to 50% for the site price alone.

We are zoning lands. Instead of rezoning, we have the tail wagging the dog with Irish Water telling us where we can and cannot built, where we can put planning permission and what we can zone. We have too many infrastructure people and too many people in utility supplies, NTA and the rest of it, dictating to local authorities where they can build properties. The Minister knows as well as I do that Irish Water and other utility companies are not a bit interested in facilitating housing or facilitating the State, including local authorities.

I congratulate Cork County Council, which has led the way when it comes to affordable housing and has delivered far more affordable housing under the stewardship of Ms Valerie O'Sullivan, the CE, and Mr. Brian Geaney, the deputy CE, who have done tremendous work. As has been mentioned by a previous speaker, though, it costs €350,000 to almost €400,000 for an affordable house. That is what we are delivering. Is the Minister listening? That is not affordable for anybody. There is no such thing as an affordable house in this country.

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