Results 281-300 of 4,700 for speaker:Noel Ahern

Housing Provisions: Motion. (25 May 2004)

Noel Ahern: One should look at the economy over recent years or the census returns which issued some months ago. They show the population of the country rose by 8%, approximately 270,000 people, in six years. One would not find another country in the world, not to mind Europe, where the population increased by 8% nationally in six years. That is an enormous increase in population. Many people who have...

Housing Provisions: Motion. (25 May 2004)

Noel Ahern: In previous decades there was not such a demand for housing. There was a surplus of housing.

Housing Provisions: Motion. (25 May 2004)

Noel Ahern: When Fine Gael and the Labour Party were in power we usually had a recession and people were getting on the boat to get out of the country as quickly as they could.

Housing Provisions: Motion. (25 May 2004)

Noel Ahern: Obviously, if we have an economic boom and ——

Housing Provisions: Motion. (25 May 2004)

Noel Ahern: —— huge numbers of people return to the country, having emigrated in previous decades, at an age group where they are setting up home, it puts pressure on the situation. The Opposition could only look on while this Government led the economic transformation which brought a degree of prosperity unimaginable a generation ago. I agree there is pressure on prices, however, price is not...

Housing Provisions: Motion. (25 May 2004)

Noel Ahern: I plead with the Chair to intervene. I had the manners to listen to the Opposition. I do not mind a little heckling but I should be given the chance to speak. Our success is evidenced by our outstanding house completions record.

Housing Provisions: Motion. (25 May 2004)

Noel Ahern: I might have some news for the Deputy, why does he not listen?

Housing Provisions: Motion. (25 May 2004)

Noel Ahern: It amuses me to hear people such as the Deputy ranting and raving all the time about social housing when the local authority of which he was a member until recently would not build any such houses.

Housing Provisions: Motion. (25 May 2004)

Noel Ahern: The Deputy should listen for a while.

Housing Provisions: Motion. (25 May 2004)

Noel Ahern: The year 2003 was the ninth record year for house completions, with 68,819 units completed, an increase in output of over 19% on 2002——

Housing Provisions: Motion. (25 May 2004)

Noel Ahern: ——and an increase of 10.5% in output in the greater Dublin area during the same period. To put that in context, because 68,819 of itself might not register, a mere ten years ago, in 1993, that figure was 22,000 houses. The move from 22,000 to 68,000 is an enormous increase.

Housing Provisions: Motion. (25 May 2004)

Noel Ahern: The figures for the 1970s and 1980s were always approximately 22,000, 24,000 or 25,000. It was like that for years. However, a mere ten years ago the figure was 22,000. In ten years it has gone from 22,000 to 68,000 which is extraordinary. I am not sure what the Labour Party is trying to say in bringing forward this motion. Does it want us to reverse the policies which now see Ireland at the...

Housing Provisions: Motion. (25 May 2004)

Noel Ahern: The Deputy may not fully appreciate the numbers. However, there is a European index which shows the number of houses built each year per 1,000 of the population. We have a rate of 17 houses per year per 1,000 of population. We are not just at the head of the list but miles ahead of the others.

Housing Provisions: Motion. (25 May 2004)

Noel Ahern: In the European context Portugal is next with approximately ten per 1,000 of population. The United Kingdom is at three per 1,000 of population and other advanced countries like Sweden are at one per 1,000 of population. We are at 17 new houses per 1,000 of population per year, which is an incredible output.

Housing Provisions: Motion. (25 May 2004)

Noel Ahern: Increasing the supply of serviced residential land through targeted initiatives and the commitment of Exchequer funding has also been effective. There is approximately a five-year supply of serviced residential land nationally and about an eight-year supply in Dublin.

Housing Provisions: Motion. (25 May 2004)

Noel Ahern: I accept the rate of house price increases is a problem. However, it has moderated considerably since the late 1990s.

Housing Provisions: Motion. (25 May 2004)

Noel Ahern: A number of market commentators, including the Central Bank, now predict greater balance in the housing market over the next few years, as increased supply has a dampening effect on house prices. Affordability has also been assisted by a range of factors, including high levels of economic growth which have facilitated lower tax levels, increased disposable income, increased employment, lower...

Housing Provisions: Motion. (25 May 2004)

Noel Ahern: My constituents live in Dublin North-West. If Deputies look at what people are paying on their mortgage, the true test of affordability, the percentage of the disposable income being paid on a mortgage is only fractionally greater than it was ten years ago.

Housing Provisions: Motion. (25 May 2004)

Noel Ahern: It does not make me or any of us happy that the benefits or dividend from falling interest rates has gone into developers' pockets.

Housing Provisions: Motion. (25 May 2004)

Noel Ahern: I will ignore the Deputy from now on. I was trying to respond.