Joe O'Toole (Independent)

Senator Ross and I welcome the support of Senator Brian Hayes for an issue which we have been highlighting for the past four or five years. It is not a new practice and the last time I spoke on it I gave an example of an auctioneering firm, Pottertons in Trim, which walked away from a deal because it refused to do the same as the unscrupulous auctioneer mentioned by Senator Hayes. Pottertons should be credited for its behaviour. There are some decent auctioneers out there but we need to look at the situation. The housing market in Dublin is disgracefully organised at the moment.

We should also discuss the quality of houses in Dublin. It is the only place in Ireland where building takes place with cavity or hollow blocks. Building is organised through HomeBond, which is owned by the building industry and which allows a lower quality of house in Dublin than anywhere else. Since 1998, we have built a quarter of a million houses which will not meet the exacting insulation standards which are now required in every other part of Europe, but which we have delayed for another 18 months in deference to the building industry. Those people who queued last week to pay the extra €28,000 will find that when they want to sell the house in five years, they will have to provide an insulation certificate for heat loss but the house may not meet the standard that exists outside Dublin. Extraordinary things are happening in auctioneering, in the cost and quality of houses and the way in which we regulate the market. I would welcome a debate on the issue.