Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)

The overriding need in our society and in our economy is for housing. The Central Bank's director of financial stability has said 50,000 homes have to be built every year for the next ten years in order to fulfil the need. The targets the Government itself has set go nowhere near this. They are in the 30s of the thousands. Will the Taoiseach accept that the market cannot deliver the scale of this? This has to be led by the State. In fact, Fianna Fáil Governments in power previously were capable of doing this. What has changed? I bought a house from Fingal County Council 23 years ago as a single teacher. A single teacher now has no means whatsoever of ever buying a house, which is why we have the crisis we have among professionals in health and education. All of the councils have land banks. In Fingal County Council, which is in Dublin where there is a large housing need, there is a land bank at Scribblestown in Dunsink, which it has identified could build 7,000 homes. Has the Taoiseach or the Minister for housing held meeting with Fingal County Council? It has asked for €200 million to be given to develop the infrastructure to open it up. It asked for this more than a month ago. Has there been a meeting about it, as an example?

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