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

I thank the Minister of State for his response. I do not doubt the sincerity of his reply, but in the amendment put forward by the Department, 28 parts are exactly the same, cut and pasted verbatim from a previous amendment to a recent Private Member's motion. Five to six are unique in relation to the application because of the structure of the motion, ten are unique to the local authority element and ten are reworded from previous debates. I have no doubt about the Minister of State's personal sincerity but the amendment is a disgrace. It is rehashed and reused. It is obvious when no other member of the Front Bench or back bench from any of the groups is sitting here for this debate. Not even one of the Lowry group, who claim to be independent, are here.

There is a moment in the life of all nations when the status quo become not just unacceptable but indefensible. This is one of the moments. Housing is not merely about economic issues; it is a question of justice, dignity and of intergenerational trust. Yet, this Government has allowed a generation of Irish people to be pushed further and further from the possibility of homeownership. This is not because we do not have the land or labour is unavailable but because of our systems - planning, utilities, procedures and procurement. They have become relics of a past Ireland. They do not meet the challenges a modern Ireland demands. In an urban Ireland, particularly in the city of Cork, which I represent, and the urban areas of Mallow, this failure takes on a sharper sting. We see scaffolding of hope being replaced by scaffolding that will never rise. Families pay record rents while new homes remain trapped in the webs of objections, deadlock and endless consultation. Zoned lands lie idle while housing lists grow. Children grow up in temporary accommodation, which has become permanent through official and Government neglect. This motion does something successive Governments have been too timid to attempt - it demands structural change, not rhetorical sympathy. It names the problem for what it is. This is a national housing emergency. The sooner the Government recognises that, the better. The motion puts forward a framework grounded not in ideology but in pragmatism. We call for emergency legislation not to abandon the standards but to match the urgency and efficiency required. We propose a housing delivery acceleration task force reporting directly to the Taoiseach because too often, accountability in this country and in this Government is lost in the fog of overlapping jurisdiction - he said it, he is in charge of that and I do not know who took responsibility for it. That is the usual we hear in the Chamber as we wring our hands.

Homes cannot be built if the pipes, wires and roads cannot be co-ordinated. A shovel cannot break ground if water and power cannot follow. Synchronised, timebound public scorecards are needed, as my good colleague mentioned. The public has a right to know the delays, where they are and who by. That is the minimum we can give them. I also call for the restoration of logical planning laws and the standardisation of housing templates, which could be preapproved, saving months of duplication. We are all sick of the objections of those with no local connection and the serial objectors. They weaponise bureaucracy and must no longer derail the common good of delivering housing for this country. As a legislator in a constituency that is 50:50 rural and urban, I know housing is not just about supply; it is about access, opportunity and fairness. When my constituents see a vacant council house lie empty for six to 12 months, they do not see the complexity of the issue; they see Government failure. We propose a quick turnaround standard for voids that fast-tracks funding so that councils can meet the mark and public scrutiny for those that do not. Let us be bold in this House. We cannot solve this problem with the same procurement rules, excluding the very builders who built the first homes in Ireland. Logical providers and mid-sized contractors must be allowed back in the arena to compete. Likewise, apprenticeship programmes must be fast-tracked not by lowering standards but by modernising delivery and matching the needs of this decade, not previous decades. This motion is unapologetic and ambitious but not arrogant, as the Minister of State admitted. It is a recognition of half-measures that have failed in the scale of a housing crisis that demands a new contract between the Government and the people of Ireland.

I remind the House of an old truth: a society grows great when old men plant trees in the shade they will never sit in. The question before us is simple: what do we want to be remembered for - a generation that accelerated a solution or prolonged the suffering of Irish people? I commend the motion to the House.

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