Pat Moylan (Fianna Fail)

——and put those families in proper accommodation. The day is gone when Travellers have to live on the side of the road and the Minister has made a good deal of money available to local authorities to address that problem.

On the Respond-type development that has taken place throughout the country, my concern is that the tenants are unable to buy those houses. There is a major movement of tenants in and out of those schemes and that must change. The only way to ensure tenants have pride in their family homes is by allowing them to buy those houses and we must change the system to allow that to take place.

The disabled person's grant is affording many people, who otherwise would be in institutions, to remain in their homes. Not much money was available to local authorities to address that in the past. We never get enough money but more people are now availing of that grant to ensure their elderly relatives can be placed in suitable accommodation or refurbish their house to enable them to stay in their own communities.

We must recognise the contribution the Minister has made regarding water and sewerage extensions in our towns and villages which allows more housing to be built and gives people the opportunity to build in those locations.

Regarding social and affordable housing, it is only now that those houses are coming on-stream throughout the country. Much of the previous housing that was built had planning permission granted and we now see the benefit of those houses for the many families who can partake in those schemes and where builders are providing houses at an affordable cost.

We hear many people complaining about the removal of the first-time buyer's grant. The first-time buyer's grant had outlived its usefulness because of the increase in the cost of houses. Very few houses in rural areas came under the requirement of 1,300 sq. ft. to qualify for grant aid. Most of them were in excess of 2,000 sq. ft. or 2,500 sq. ft. of floor area, almost double the size of what was required to qualify for grant aid.

The Opposition has hit the Minister hard in a number of areas. I was a member of a local authority which was ordered by a coalition Government, not led by Fianna Fáil, to sell land we had bought for housing in our county.