Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)

Rents in the private sector have gone down in the past year yet rent allowance payments have gone up to €76 million. A year or two ago landlords did not want health board cheques but now they will take them because there are vacant units. It was obvious that a disproportionate number of people received rent allowance in the past year and it was necessary to take some measure to clip the wings of those who were not needy cases.

Increasing the supply of serviced residential land through targeted initiatives and the commitment of Exchequer funding has paid off and based on 2002 output levels there is approximately a six year supply of serviced land available. The Government has also responded to the needs of first-time buyers in other ways, including its continuing commitment to the shared ownership and affordable housing schemes.