Shane Ross (Independent)

——and of Fianna Fáil. It would be very relevant to any debate on the economy if we debated the construction industry. The other aspect might be closer to Senator Ryan's heart than to many others in this House. That is not a patronising remark about members of the Labour Party. While most of us in this House are well enough off to own our own homes, the property boom is having an appalling social effect on those who cannot get on the property ladder. It is time this House, particularly the Fianna Fáil side, recognised that property has more purposes than pure profit. It also has a purpose in housing people who cannot afford to put down the first deposit to get them on that ladder.