Cyprian Brady (Fianna Fail)

I move amendment No. 1:

To delete all words after "That" and substitute the following:

Seanad Éireann supports the efforts of the Government in:

—increasing housing supply as the key response to the broad range of housing needs and demands resulting in over 500,000 houses, equivalent to one third of Ireland's total housing stock, being completed in the past ten years;

—investing in serviced land to the extent that we now have some six years supply of serviced residential land nationally;

—bringing forward five-year housing action plans by local authorities for the period 2004 to 2008 to co-ordinate, accelerate and bring greater integration to action on housing at local level, with particular reference to social and affordable housing measures;

—initiating the development of active land management strategies by local authorities in order to support the achievement of the ambitious scale of social and affordable housing envisaged in their action plans;

—providing for the needs of almost 100,000 households since 1997 through various programmes, including through affordable housing measures with some 2,900 affordable housing units delivered last year;

—prioritising and advancing the special initiative on housing and accommodation under Sustaining Progress which will deliver more than 10,000 affordable houses through the affordable housing initiative and Part V;

—establishing the affordable homes partnership to accelerate delivery of affordable housing in the greater Dublin area;

—launching a new housing policy framework, Building Sustainable Communities, to provide an integrated approach to guide housing policy and investment over the coming years; and

—pursuing prudent fiscal policies to respond to housing demand and provide a stable economic climate.

I welcome the Minister of State to the House. I welcome the opportunity to speak on this matter, which arises as a direct result of the success that the Government and the previous Government have brought to the country. The issue is not about supply but about demand. The figures suggest that in the last quarter of 2005 alone, 26,563 houses were built, with 81,000 built in the full year, which is a 5% increase on the previous year. Some 248,100 people are now employed in the construction industry. These figures are phenomenal and do not only apply to Dublin.

Yesterday we welcomed the Minister's announcement of the financial allocations for local authorities, which will be in excess of €1 billion, and include €942 million for the provision of housing, €45 million for Traveller accommodation and €48 million for remedial works. This constitutes an increase of over €100 million on last year's allocation. We are dealing with supply issues but demand continues to grow. Population growth and the influx of workers from abroad feed into that demand. These issues must be managed and, to be fair, the steps we have taken recently will deal with these demands in time.

The local authorities will build or acquire 6,000 units this year alone. My experience is with Dublin City Council. I take this opportunity to congratulate the housing section of the city council, which is one of the most progressive councils in the country and has done great work in the north inner city in particular. The Minister will refer to Ballymun and other areas but my experience in the north inner city is that there has been significant change. Through proper planning and investment, all the work done by Dublin City Council has paid off. In Dominick Street and Mountain View Court, the council plans to demolish decrepit flat complexes which, while they served their purpose, have become uninhabitable over time. The council has taken a policy decision to replace these complexes with state-of-the-art housing, in many cases with own-door housing. I have encouraged city officials to continue down that road because the more own-door housing that is provided in the inner city, the better. We do not want to go back to the 1950s and 1960s, when people were literally put in boxes and left there for many years. That practice has changed.

I have studied the plans for places such as O'Devanney Gardens, where a major public private partnership is planned and about 800 units will replace 1950s and 1960s flat complexes. This will feed into the issues concerning the supply of houses in Dublin.

Successful projects have been undertaken in the city, particularly the inner city. Much of the co-operative housing that has been provided has proven successful. Killarney Court in Killarney Street was probably one of the most notorious flat complexes for drug dealing and so on but it has been completely turned around. There is now a settled community with all necessary facilities, security and local schools — children are feeding into Larkin community college. This is a major change for that area, given the problems it had during the heroin epidemic of the 1980s and early 1990s. That change came about through proper planning and investment. If we continue with such programmes, particularly with regard to housing, including local authority housing, and associated facilities, matters can only improve.

The management of social and affordable developments is essential. We could rush into this process and provide boxes left, right and centre but that is not sustainable. Communities need schools, access to transport and services. Whether in the inner city or the suburbs, if these issues are not dealt with properly at the planning stage, significant problems will result. Therefore, management and planning is essential.

A development is under way at Spencer Dock on the north quays, in the area of the Irish Financial Services Centre. Discussions on this development began a number of years ago, which resulted in a new school for the North Wall area to deal with the influx of residents who will move to the area. The discussions at the planning stage considered family housing, including not only apartments for individuals but two and three-bedroom apartments, as well as the provision of shops, crèches and leisure facilities. This approach will pay dividends.

Mistakes have been made in the past, from which we must learn. In the past, Cherry Orchard had no facilities — not a shop, a school or a telephone box. That has changed. Dublin City Council recognised the challenges. It accepted that issues had been neglected over a long period and decided to tackle them. As a result, areas have been transformed. There are now football pitches, schools, leisure facilities, clubs and organisations in places like Cherry Orchard, which had been neglected for many years.

I have visited cities such as Glasgow to study sustainable models of high density urban housing, from which we must learn. It is possible to balance development with the right of people to an acceptable quality of life, which is what we must aim for.

The issue in this country is not with supply but with demand, with which we will have to keep up. Major initiatives have been put in place, including with regard to affordable housing and shared ownership schemes. In north County Dublin, thousands of private and public housing units are being built. Many of the Part V houses will only come on stream this year and next year, and the Dublin Docklands Development Authority will have an input into the location of such houses.

I support the amendment and welcome the opportunity to discuss the issue.