Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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Before I begin, I will say that my thoughts and those of the party are with the families of those who lost their lives in the Stardust fire. As we all know, they have waited four decades for answers as to what happened to their loved ones at that time. They have faced many obstacles, including those put in their way by this State. I hope the families involved will get the answers they have waited for today. I extend to them my solidarity and the solidarity of everyone in Sinn Féin on this momentous day.

Tá an córas printíseachta a bhaineann le cúrsaí tógála i ngéarchéim. Tá a fhios ag an Taoiseach é seo mar is eisean a bhí i gceannas ar an gcóras seo le tamall fada. In áit ghnímh, is é an rud atáimid ag feiceáil ón Rialtas seo ná deiseanna grianghraf agus athfhógairt arís agus arís eile nach bhfuil inti ach aer te. Tá a fhios againn anois go bhfuil 9,000 daoine a bhfuil printíseachtaí i gcúrsaí tógála acu ag fanacht lena n-oiliúint as-an-obair a chríochnú. Ina measc, tá daoine ar mhian leo a bheith ina mbriceadóirí, ina siúinéirí agus ina bpluiméirí láncháilithe ach nach bhfuil in ann é sin a bhaint amach san am ba chóir nó san am a leagadh síos.

The construction-related apprenticeship system is in crisis and nobody should know this better than the Taoiseach. However, instead of action, what we got from this Government was photo opportunities and reannouncements that amounted to nothing more than hot air. There are now 9,000 in construction-related apprenticeships who are waiting to complete their off-the-job training. These include people who want to become fully qualified bricklayers, plumbers and carpenters. These are the people who want to help to sort out the housing crisis but, because this Government took its eye off the ball, it is taking far longer for them to get qualified. If the Tánaiste does not understand, the backlog of 9,000 means that a four-year apprenticeship can now take up to six years to complete and, because the rates of pay are tied to the number of phases of off-the-job training apprentices have completed, they are earning a hell of a lot less than they should be.

One apprentice electrician contacted my colleague, Deputy Mairéad Farrell. He told her how he has been waiting 18 months to get called for phase 2 off-the-job training. This fella has three children to support. Many others have told us that they have waited more than two years for phase 2 off-the-job training. I hardly need to remind the Tánaiste that, after phase 2 off-the-job training, there are phase 4 and phase 6 before apprentices are fully qualified so they still have some way to go. Another individual who contacted us told us that he has been waiting 21 months to go into phase 4. He said that most of the work he does is the same as is done by qualified fellas but that they can earn double while he struggles day by day just to get by. We could go on and on with the real-life stories of the 9,000 people who are locked out of off-the-job training because the Government took its eye off the ball.

We are now seeing significant numbers dropping out of their courses because of the dire conditions. I have figures here that were provided by the Taoiseach in a signed letter he gave to Deputy Farrell. He tells us that registrations for craft apprenticeships in the last three years number approximately 6,000 and that, in that time, more than 1,000 people have dropped out. That is more than one in six craft apprentices dropping out, many because of their frustration at the length of time it is taking to get off-the-job training or at not being able to get it. It is a damning indictment of this Government and its supposed attempts to tackle the housing crisis. The Government is turning potential tradespeople away from the construction sector at a time when we need to expand our workforce. There are also people thinking of heading to Australia. One apprentice electrician told us that he will be going to Oz once qualified, saying that this country does not look after tradesmen. There is no mystery in this. The Government has treated these adults like children.

Given the delays we are seeing, that one in six are dropping out, that 9,000 are waiting for off-the-job training and that a four-year apprenticeship is taking six years or more, what is the Government going to do to sort this out once and for all?

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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First, I will say that all of our thoughts are with the families of those who died in the Stardust tragedy in 1981. For over 40 years now, the families have pursued their search for truth and justice. In a couple of hours' time, we will hear the verdict of the Dublin Coroner's Court. This will be an important moment for the families and for the entire country because the Stardust tragedy is seared into the collective consciousness of the Irish people. The tenacity of the families and their success in securing this inquest has been a service to all in society. I join with everyone else in sharing our thoughts with them today of all days.

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. I will first make the overall point that more than 160,000 people now work in construction in Ireland. Tá dul chun cinn ollmhór le feiscint sa mhéadú ar an líon daoine atá ag obair ag tógáil tithíochta agus a lán rudaí eile. Tá an méadú níos láidre in Éirinn ná in aon tír eile san Eoraip. In percentage terms, our construction output is increasing. It is the highest output across the 27 European member states. You do not get those figures if you do not have apprentices coming through and if you do not have an increase in the workforce. That is the fundamental issue.

Nobody has taken their eye of the ball in respect of apprenticeships. Eliminating waits of six months or longer for apprentice training, predominantly phase 2 off-the-job training, has been an area of unrelenting focus for this Government. Indeed, we set up a separate Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science to give greater focus at Cabinet to the whole area of skills and apprenticeships. Very significant progress has been made. The Covid-19 pandemic created very significant backlogs in respect of apprenticeships but those are reducing. The number of apprenticeship registrations to the end of 2023 was 8,712, an increase of 5% on the end of 2022 and of 41% on the 2019 figure. There has been a very significant change in respect of people signing up for apprenticeships. The number of craft apprenticeship registrations increased from 5,271 in 2019 to 6,588 in 2023, an increase of 25%.

In October of last year, all of the stakeholders formed a task force. This comprised departmental officials, SOLAS, the NAO, the HEA, ETBI, the ETBs, employers, apprentices, staff and their union representatives. It developed a cross-sectoral plan to address the backlog. I was surprised the Deputy did not reference the cross-sectoral plan developed by that task force. The National Apprenticeship Office is leading the response, overseen by the Department. The rapid implementation of the response plan means that the backlog had reduced to 3,460 the end of March this year. This is made up of 3,347 waiting on phase 2, 95 waiting on phase 4, and 18 waiting on phase 6. Some €67 million was secured in budget 2024 for the delivery of apprenticeships. Approximately €300 million has been provided for apprenticeships in total. Of this, €40 million was temporary to assist with capacity in training. That will continue.

Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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If somebody was doing a four-year law degree and it ended up taking him or her six years or more, it would be unacceptable. If we told our teachers that their four-year course was now to last six or six and a half years, it would be unacceptable. Why is it acceptable for plumbers?

Why is it acceptable for plasterers, brickies and carpenters? That is what is happening under the Government. It cannot get away from the figures. The Tánaiste talked about October. In October, 5,514 people were waiting for off-the-job training. The figures in January spiked to 9,000. That is why we told the Government it is taking its eye off the ball. We have apprentices the length and breadth of the country who want to roll up their sleeves and get involved in helping out with the housing crisis, yet they are being frustrated. They are telling the Government in their own words that it does not value them, and that they are waiting a year and a half to two years to get off-the-job training. It is not just about phase 2. It is phases 4 and 6 as well. These numbers are getting worse. That is the problem. The numbers are getting worse overall. The number of people waiting for off-the-job training is getting worse overall.

What are the consequences of that? The Taoiseach told my colleague, Deputy Mairéad Farrell, that of the approximately 6,000 people who are registering every year for craft apprenticeships, more than 1,000 are dropping out because they are sick, sore and tired of waiting month after month for what they should be entitled to within a short number of weeks, which is their training. It is unacceptable. I have heard nothing from the Government on what it will do to fix this.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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When I mentioned October, it was in reference to the task force that was put together, came together and developed a cross-sectoral plan. That was what I referenced. The Deputy keeps saying nothing is being done-----

Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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They have the numbers-----

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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-----and just ignores what has been done. He creates the scenario, for a political reason that suits him, that the Government does not value apprenticeships. That is nonsense. Of course the Government values apprenticeships. Come on, cop on with the nonsense. That kind of language is grand for politics and the back and forth, but it does not make any real sense.

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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The substance of the matter is clear.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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We want to grow craft apprenticeships and construction. We have expanded in that regard. There are now 17 programmes across the broad categories of construction, including electrical engineering, which are relevant to the construction sector. We have actually expanded. That includes the plumbing, electrical, geo drilling and scaffolding programmes and so forth.

The numbers who register are increasing. Just because the Deputy said it is getting worse does not mean that is the truth. The number of people registering for construction apprenticeships is on the increase. In 2022, there were 4,797 across the 17 programmes. That went up to close to 5,000 in 2023 and, so far this year, 1,322 apprentices have registered, a rate that will lead to a further annual increase in 2024. From 2022 to 2024, craft construction apprenticeships have been on the increase. That is the reality.

A Deputy:

Asleep on the job.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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We have to deal with the backlog.

Holly Cairns (Cork South West, Social Democrats)
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Housing is often discussed in the Chamber but, too often, we do not discuss the reality of it and the real-life impact this crisis has on people's lives. The Irish Examiner spoke with some of these people this week. Kelly-Anne Healy is aged 37 and lives at home with her parents in Blackpool, Cork. She has worked since she was a teenager and always thought if she worked hard enough she would one day own a home of her own, but that dream is rapidly fading. She said, "When you’re single, people think you have this fancy life, but there’s not much you can do from your childhood bedroom." Kelly-Anne's living situation is also taking a toll on her parents who see their daughter struggling. She said, "My dad is the biggest worrier in the world and I know it’s difficult for him seeing me so stressed."

Jennifer Manifold is aged 45 and still living in a house share with two housemates in Cork. Despite working full time, she has no hope of buying and cannot even afford to rent on her own. Jennifer said her living situation is "depressing". She tries not to think about what would happen if she were evicted. She said, "This is creating such anxiety ... . This is something that many people in a position of power would not be able to understand.”

Christina Galvin is 51 years old and may have to emigrate because of the housing disaster. Christina said she has a good salary but most of it goes on rent for her one-bedroom apartment in Galway. She feels huge stress and, tragically, shame because of her housing situation. She said, “I am beyond outrage. I am despairing."

Kelly-Anne, Jennifer and Christina are just three of the tens of thousands of people who are suffering because of the housing disaster. Tens of thousands of people are enduring the same trauma with their every waking moment consumed with dread and fear. Without housing security, your whole life feels unmoored. It feels as if there is no place for you in society, that your life is passing you by, and that you are missing opportunities to start a relationship, family or new career. There is also helplessness and frustration because you cannot do anything about it. Worst of all, some people feel shame, as if they are the failure. The reality is not being able to pay rack-rents or record house prices is not a personal failure. It is due to a failed Government housing plan and a shameful refusal to admit it.

We learned yesterday that house prices have gone up again, by a further 6%. As house prices continue to soar, the Government continues to miss its affordable housing targets. Last year, it managed to deliver just 499 affordable purchase homes and just 966 cost-rental homes. That is less than 1,500 affordable homes when the target was 5,500. Will the Tánaiste please explain why the Government is not meeting its affordable housing targets? Will he explain it to people such as Kelly-Anne, Jennifer, Christina and everybody else out there who are in similar situations?

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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I will make the point, and I have said it repeatedly in the House, that housing is the single most urgent and important social issue facing our people at this moment in time. Access to housing is fundamental to our security, social cohesion, opportunity for people and progress as a nation. There is not a family in the country untouched by the crisis. I respectfully suggest the Deputy does not have a monopoly on this issue in terms of empathy or understanding of the crisis facing many individuals and young people. I suggest everybody in the House knows of the challenges facing younger people in respect of being in the position either of being able to afford a house or to afford rent to pay on a house.

The Deputy attacked the Government plan but has not produced an alternative plan. The Housing for All plan is the most substantive document produced by anybody in the House. The Government produced it. It has been updated, refreshed and includes many different schemes. I have not seen any substantive, alternative document detailing how people think we will get to 35,000 or 40,000 houses. I just have not seen it. There is a responsibility in this regard. It is legitimate to criticise the Government plan, but there is a real obligation on the Deputy and others to produce coherent plans that will lead to increased supply.

Increased supply is the issue. We have exceeded our targets. Last year, we had close to 33,000 houses. The commencement data, which will be out at 2 p.m., confirms that house building continues to gain momentum. We had 4,900 housing starts in March of this year. That is an increase of 51% on March of last year. That is the highest number of homes commenced in any March since records began in 2015. Building began on approximately 12,000 homes in the first three months of 2024. This is 63% up on the same time in 2023. That is because of measures we took to accelerate and boost housing construction and commencements. Ultimately, however, even though we have delivered 100,000 houses since 2020, it is not enough. The demand is higher than the supply, which is the fundamental issue leading to price increases and huge challenges for people.

We have brought in significant affordability schemes, including the help to buy scheme and the first home scheme. There are capital grants for vacant houses, which are up to €70,000 in the case of dereliction. Some 4,000 people have now applied for those grants whereby they can live in those houses, if they are refurbished, brought back from dereliction, or if vacant houses are refurbished. There have been substantial numbers of applications to the first home scheme. That is real assistance on the affordability question.

Holly Cairns (Cork South West, Social Democrats)
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I do not know whether the Tánaiste thinks people believe him when he comes to the House and says we do not put forward any solutions.

In the past number of weeks alone, my colleague, Deputy O'Callaghan, has put forward 255 amendments to the planning Bill but the Government has just routinely voted them down. One of them was around zoning land for affordable housing. It was rejected.

On the immediate solutions we have suggested, they include a tax with teeth on vacancy to try to address the tens of thousands of vacant homes in the middle of a housing crisis and an effective stamp duty on the bulk buying of homes where first-time buyers are not competing with billion euro funds. The Government has refused to do that. It has gone under the radar this week that it will not. That is not to mention the introduction of a ban on no-fault evictions. This is something that is standard across the rest of Europe and the Government will not even introduce it when more children are becoming homeless by the week.

On more medium-term solutions suggested by the Social Democrats, we have put forward a motion on home ownership with a focus on re-directing subsidies from developers. Related to that we have a Developer Profits Transparency Bill 2023. The Tenancy Protection Bill will protect tenants from large-scale evictions. We have published a Bill which would make landlords demanding sex in lieu of rent an offence. Another Social Democrats Bill would create a land price register. We have put forward suggestions to amend the mandate that at least 15% of new apartment builds go to individuals and families.

That kind of spin is just something people are sick of and it solidifies the feeling that the Government is just in denial. Can the Tánaiste answer my question on what he has to say to the fact that he has not met any of the Government's affordable housing targets since it took office? I recognised that supplies have increased from the private market but we need supplies of affordable homes to reduce the price of housing overall because at the core of this crisis is an issue of affordability. Please answer the question about affordable housing targets.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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Again, I say to the Deputy, everything or the majority of what she has outlined there or some of what she has suggested would reduce supply of houses, which is about curtailing the market or restricting.

Holly Cairns (Cork South West, Social Democrats)
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Does the Tánaiste think that his approach is working?

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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We do not have to do this as we have already curtailed the bulk purchasing of property through the planning laws and through a stamp duty.

Holly Cairns (Cork South West, Social Democrats)
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It is not working.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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It is working.

Holly Cairns (Cork South West, Social Democrats)
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It is not working.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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It is working, despite all of the Deputy's spin-----

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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Not for apartments.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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-----and the evidence is there in that the vast majority of house purchases-----

Holly Cairns (Cork South West, Social Democrats)
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The Government could have introduced an eviction ban.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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----in the country are by citizens and individuals. We have had the highest number of first-time buyers in years on an ongoing basis. What does that tell the Deputy? It tells us that affordability is improving-----

Holly Cairns (Cork South West, Social Democrats)
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Will the Tánaiste answer the question?

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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-----for quite a number of first-time buyers. We doubled the number of affordable homes this year and we will continue to increase the direct intervention by the State. This is not spin, because Housing for All is a fairly substantial document. It has been updated, and so forth and there are quarterly reports.

Holly Cairns (Cork South West, Social Democrats)
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It would be great if the Tánaiste answered my question.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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I have seen no other substantive document from any party saying how we are going to get to building 40,000 or 50,000 houses per annum. We can all pluck figures out of the air but we need an actual programme and clear policy platform as to how one gets more houses built-----

Holly Cairns (Cork South West, Social Democrats)
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That is what I have been talking about for the past four years and why we have raised 255 amendments.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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-----and how one gets more houses into the private rental market. I would suggest the Deputy's policies would take more houses out of the private rental market.

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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I call Deputy Shanahan now on behalf of the Regional Group.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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Are we not next, a Cheann Comhairle.

Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
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We are next.

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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A mistake was made in the order for the week, which nobody spotted.

Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
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Are we not up then?

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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We will revert to normal after this week.

Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
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Can we not participate in Leaders' Questions today?

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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You do yes, and you are next after Deputy Shanahan, but the order was flawed.

Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
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Parties come before-----

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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I know that.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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Which party is that?

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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We have to follow-----

Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
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People Before Profit. Yes, it is one legal party-----

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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There are different constituent parts to it.

Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
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Yes, like Fianna Fáil. You have a lot of dissidents in your party.

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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Please, Members. A mistake was made in the order, which put the Regional Group ahead of Deputy Boyd Barrett's party which should not have happened and it will be corrected. I Call Deputy Shanahan now, please.

Matt Shanahan (Waterford, Independent)
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Gabhaim buíochas leis an gCeann Comhairle.

Similar to previous Fianna Fáil Cork leader, senior hurling politics is a game the Tánaiste plays well. First the ball, but if unsuccessful then the player.

This is not about me but it is about a critical life-saving service for 600,000 people with whom the Government is playing politics. Consider for instance that having commissioned the national cardiac review in 2017, seven years later it is still sitting unpublished on the desk of the Minister, Deputy Donnelly, or the failure to deliver the required cardiac day ward promised with the cath lab extension, or the recent announcement by the Minister, Deputy Donnelly, of cuts to University Hospital Waterford, UHW, citing elective inefficiency, while having closed down the highly effective Kilcreene surgery unit just six months ago, and having completely cleaved UHW from a cent of last July's €350 million model 4 capital programme. The Tánaiste may wonder why he is not loved in the south east. I ask him to fulfil his promise to deliver 24-7 service to the south east.

On 19 October 2021, during Leaders' Questions, I asked the Tánaiste, who was then Taoiseach, when he envisaged increasing cardiac services in University Hospital Waterford. In raising this question I reminded him of the pre-election promise he made to almost 600,000 people who rely on that model 4 hospital for acute access. In 2016 the Tánaiste stood on the grounds of UHW beside his then council candidate, and now our junior Minister for health, and promised to provide 24-7 cardiac care to the south-east region. That photo and promise had a direct connection to re-establishing a Fianna Fáil seat in Waterford and strengthening Fianna Fáil across the region. The Tánaiste is not a novice politician unaware of how government works. He stood for a photo as a former Minister for Health and as a lifelong student of senior hurling politics. On 19 October 2021, the Tánaiste's answer to me in the House said to the people of the region that he was going to dramatically expand cardiac provision. He has, to a certain extent. After five years of foot-dragging, the Minister, Deputy Donnelly, opened the second cath lab last summer. The service has increased from 40 to 60 hours per week, and from 23% of the week recovered to 35%. There are still 108 hours of every week without emergency cardiac care. The Tánaiste's Ministers' recurring promises for a seven-day service have not materialised.

On 7 July, the Minister, Deputy Donnelly announced at UHW that the seven-day service would commence by year end. On 7 December, on morning radio, the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, seeing that nothing had advanced, announced that needed recruitment would commence in January and that the seven-day service would be up and running by the end of March. March then bowed out with still nothing progressed and the Minister returned to Damien Tiernan's radio show to announce that recruitment would begin immediately. As these posts had not been advertised, I can only assume that the funding has not been given.

This is a burning issue in the south east. It is an equality issue. People have marched in the streets over this issue. Will the Tánaiste deliver on his promise?

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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Deputy Shanahan has an undue paranoia of Cork hurling.

Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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You can play me on Sunday.

Matt Shanahan (Waterford, Independent)
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There you go again, Tánaiste.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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No I am not. Deputy Shanahan seems obsessed with senior hurling and Cork. We will park that for a moment.

Since this Government came into office, there has been a very focused prioritisation and commitment to the south east on a whole range of investments. At different times when I have engaged with the Deputy, he has acknowledged that, particularly with regard to health. Then, every now and again, he goes back to the original script, which is one where he endeavours to portray the Government as not committed to Waterford or to the south east, and that could not be further from the truth. With the presence of Deputy Butler, as a Minister of State, and other Deputies and public representatives from Waterford, issues pertaining to Waterford in the south east are always very high on our agenda.

There has been very strong employment growth across the regions, including the south east. The number of jobs in the south east has gone up 30% under this Government. That is across all of the various agency employment and supports from all of the various agencies etc.

From foreign direct investment, FDI, perspective, the south-east region has been strong over the past five years with employment going up 25% among IDA clients, with 86 IDA-client companies employing approximately 15,500 people in the south east. There are 46 in Waterford alone, and then there is the Waterford North Quays project, and so forth.

On University Hospital Waterford, people paint pictures of decline and decay yet then one reads and see the staffing at the hospital has gone up by 42% since 2019. That is close to 829 additional people working in the hospital. The Deputy then says nothing is being done and all of that. It just does not add up. There comes a time when we need balance in public commentary. People also need to acknowledge progress when progress happens. There are 46 more consultants in Waterford hospital and 97 more non-consultant hospital doctors, 348 more nurses and midwives, as well as 128 more health and social care professionals. The budget in 2019 was €201 million for the hospital and it has now grown by €89 million to approximately €219 million. That is 44% of an increase in funding in five years to University Hospital Waterford with an additional 43 acute hospital beds.

The planning application for the surgical hub has been submitted. It is regularly praised as a hospital for not having patients on trolleys. As the Deputy said, the second cath lab opened in September 2023. It operates five days per week, Monday to Friday, from 8 a.m to 6 p.m., and 24 healthcare staff were provided to open the second cath lab. In September 2022, the opening hours for the first cath lab were extended to 8 p.m. from Monday to Friday, excluding bank holidays. The Minister for Health has made it clear that additional staff will be hired for the hospital in 2024 to complement existing services and extend the opening hours, as I said. The point is-----

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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We are way over time.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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-----that in this Dáil, demonstrable and clear progress has been made on cardiac services and the cath lab, in addition to a wide range of other healthcare services and the broader economic developments in this area.

Matt Shanahan (Waterford, Independent)
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I hope in the future, when the Tánaiste comes in and starts quoting statistics, that he will refer to money rather than percentages. I remind him that University Hospital Waterford, which has one of the largest patient catchments in the country, has the lowest funding and lowest numbers of staff and beds of all model 4 hospitals in the country. It is a case of taking a hospital that was left moribund for two decades, bringing it up a some amount and then telling us that we have had amazing delivery. We certainly have not. I remind the Tánaiste that 22,000 people marched in Waterford in 2013 because of issues with our university and hospital. To date, neither the university nor the hospital has been addressed, especially cardiac care delivery. This is an equality issue. Why should the people of the south-east region continue to suffer without access to emergency heart attack services at University Hospital Waterford every weekend? How is that fair in any part of this country? It is patently unfair. The Tánaiste took electoral aggrandisement when promised in 2016 that he would deliver a 24-7 service. We still do not even have a weekend service. I ask him to deliver properly on his promises. That is all I am asking him to do.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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The extra staff have been appointed to the cath lab-----

Matt Shanahan (Waterford, Independent)
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The seven-day service is not there.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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-----and the hours extended. I did not give percentages to the Deputy. Over the five years, €89 million in addition to the base figure has been allocated. I gave the figures in respect of the staff, not percentages, when I said-----

Matt Shanahan (Waterford, Independent)
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Staff numbers are still among the lowest in the country.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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-----that some 829 additional staff had been appointed-----

Matt Shanahan (Waterford, Independent)
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It is the lowest resourced model 4 hospital.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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-----including 46 more consultants, 97 more non-consultant hospital doctors and 348 more nurses. I gave actual figures on real people who have been recruited to work in University Hospital Waterford, and rightly so. It is a great hospital, one of the better performing hospitals in the country.

Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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Hear, hear.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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We need to continue to resource the hospital and broaden services.

Matt Shanahan (Waterford, Independent)
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Correct.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy knows that the elephant in the room, which he has not referenced, is clinical decision-making, national clinical standards and so on.

Matt Shanahan (Waterford, Independent)
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Publish the national report on it.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy knows the background of everything to do with the cath lab issue.

Matt Shanahan (Waterford, Independent)
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The Tánaiste should publish the national report on it.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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To be fair to the Minister of State, Deputy Mary Butler, she has fought for this tenaciously. I have to give her credit. It resulted in a second cath lab being put in place, the extension of the hours and the additional staff to staff it. We will keep at it.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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On behalf of People Before Profit, I extend my solidarity and support to the families of the 48 who never came home from the Artane fire in 1981. I hope that today is the day they finally get the truth and justice they deserve after their 40-year long struggle.

Next Tuesday at 5.30 p.m. outside the Dáil, the Raise the Roof campaign will hold a major rally demanding secure and affordable housing for all. The coalition of trade unions, housing groups, political parties and student unions will put forward a motion in Private Members' time on the same day calling for the Government to acknowledge its failure to address the unprecedented housing and homelessness crisis and demanding that it finally deliver the social and affordable housing we need, control rents to put them in line with the incomes of ordinary workers, deal with the scandal of vacant and derelict property, reinstate the no-fault fiction ban and deliver genuine affordability, which would give ordinary young and working people some hope of getting a secure and affordable roof over their head. The rally comes on the back of this Government's utter failure to deliver secure and affordable housing for working people and a whole generation of young people, meet even its own completely inadequate affordable housing targets, which it missed by 1,191, and meet its social and affordable housing targets.

In Dublin, the average house price has now reached €511,000 and the average monthly rent has reached €2,344 in the private sector. The latest Central Statistics Office figures show that in the past 12 months those already unaffordable house prices have gone up by another 6% and those already unaffordable rents have gone up by 10%.

The Government says that we do not offer solutions but the solutions it is proposing are going to make matters worse. It plans to extend a suspension of development levies to throw another €300 million at the developers who are delivering completely unaffordable housing and completely unaffordable rents. In contrast, on Committee Stage of the Planning Development Bill 2023 yesterday, we proposed an amendment to increase the amount of social and affordable housing from 20% to 50% but the Government rejected it. It also rejects the proposals being put forward by the Raise the Roof campaign, housing groups, ICTU and many of the Opposition political parties. What does the Tánaiste have to say to those who will gather outside the Dáil next week to protest at the Government's failure to deliver the social and affordable housing the people of this country so desperately need?

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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As I said earlier, housing is the most important issue facing this country and our people. We have to focus on policies that will increase the number of houses we can build every year. This will also increase the number of houses that are available to the rental market. What the Deputy has put forward would, I suggest, depress the number of houses available to the rental market and lead to a decrease in the supply of houses more generally. For example, the Deputy is against the waiver of development levies. The commencement data, which is out today, indicates that there were about 4,900 housing starts in March, which is an increase of 51% on March of last year. If the Deputy's policies were implemented, we would not achieve that figure next year or the year after that. We would not see increases in housing starts. The Deputy's proposals for the proportion of social housing in developments would also depress supply, whether he likes it or not.

Perhaps Deputy Boyd Barrett believes in a full State intervention approach. In my view, the capacity does not exist. What I mean is that the Deputy does not believe in any private sector housing really. It is fair enough if that is his position. He would probably have direct labour and a direct State and national building agency, with the State building every house in the country. It would take some time to get that up and running and, meanwhile, we would have people fleeing the market. I genuinely believe that what the Deputy is proposing would be catastrophic for the housing market and for young people trying to buy houses.

In total, 12,000 social homes were delivered in 2023. That is the highest figure since 1975. Of those, 8,100 were built and the rest were acquired for tenants in situ and so on There are about 22,500 more social homes, either on site or at design and tender stage. Mortgage draw-downs by first-time buyers reached a new peak, at about 26,000, in 2023. That is the highest annual level since 2007. We are improving affordability for younger people to be in the position to buy houses. Last year, 33,000 houses were completed. We hope to exceed the target we set for this year and already the signs are that we will do so.

On cost-rental and affordable purchase housing, some 6,000 affordable homes had been delivered in quarter 4 of 2023, which is double what had been produced prior to that.

On dereliction, I do not know whether the Deputy supports the grant-based scheme we have introduced. It provides €70,000 and other supports for a young couple or individual to bring a derelict house back into use.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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All those statistics are cold comfort to Amy and her husband, who were in my office this week. Amy is out of work on illness benefit at the moment and her husband is a bus driver. Their net income after tax is €48,000. They are facing homelessness because of an eviction on grounds of sale. The only accommodation available costs €3,000 in rent per month. Because they are over the social housing income threshold, they are not entitled to social housing. If they end up homeless, they will not even be able to get HAP. In order to pay a rent of €3,000 per month, which is all that is available, they will have to spend 75% of their income on rent, which is impossible. What does the Tánaiste have to say to Amy and her husband, a bus driver, who are facing the prospect of homelessness? I think they will say that they need to be out on the streets next Tuesday on the Raise the Roof demonstration along with many others. What does the Tánaiste have to say to Niamh and Anthony and their children, who spent their second Christmas in a homeless hub in my area? I could go on through the list.

The Government's reliance on private developers and speculators to deliver affordable housing is failing. The rents and house prices are going up and the Government still wants to throw money at them. What we need are controls on rents and house prices and for the State to deliver social and affordable housing at scale.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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What I would say to Amy and her husband and Niamh and Anthony is that the Deputy's proposals would make the situation catastrophically worse.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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It could not be worse than it is.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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It would be much worse.

Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
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They are homeless.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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People would leave the rental market immediately because the Deputy's party is all about control, to the extent that there would be nobody left in the rental market by the time it was finished. They just will not be there. It is evident in terms of the policies. About 4,000 affordable homes were delivered in 2020. That is double. A total of 12,000 social houses were delivered last year. We are being realistic and honest with people. I am not going to create some sort of fairytale and say there is a wonderful world awaiting us if only People Before Profit was in government and that we would then have-----

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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They have spent two Christmases in a hub with their family.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy's proposals will not sort that out. That is my point.

Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
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Build houses.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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They would make it much worse. The Deputy should be more honest about how he articulates his model but he never does that because it does not suit him politically to do so.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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It is the Raise the Roof model. The Tánaiste will see it outside on the streets next Tuesday.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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Exactly. That is where the Deputy wants to be. He is not really interested in going through the bricks and mortar of getting houses built. That is not his interest. It is electoral-----

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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Did the Tánaiste read the ICTU plan?

Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
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He wants to fill the pockets of his friends. Fianna Fáil wants more money for developers.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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That is the old line.

Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
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Giving €300 million to developers while 4,000 children are homeless, that is what he is interested in. Fianna Fáil is in the pockets of those who were in the Galway tent. It pretends to build houses and puts money into the pockets of developers. That is all it is interested in.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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We are interested in getting houses built unlike the Deputy. We need more honesty from him. Tell the people what he really believes in.

Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
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I will. I believe in rent controls and building public homes on public land. Do not fill the pockets of developers.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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That would stop housing development after housing development in Dublin.

Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
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The Government is responsible for the housing crisis - housing crisis after housing crisis.

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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If the Deputy is going to protest outside on Tuesday, protest outside but can we have a bit of order in here?

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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Protesting in here certainly does not work.