Déirdre de Búrca (Green Party)

I welcome the Minister of State to the House. The statements we have heard on developments in the housing market have been interesting. We must admit that the construction sector has been one of the most buoyant areas of the economy over the past ten or 15 years. The housing market has favoured developers and investors during that time. When one considers that the average house price increased by 153% over the past ten years while building costs increased by just 41%, it is clear there were significant profits to be made in the building sector.

The acknowledged slowdown in the housing market means it will be much more advantageous for buyers. That will be a positive development for ordinary citizens trying to buy houses because houses will be much more affordable for them. There has been a significant increase in the size of the housing stock that is coming on the market. Approximately 25,000 residential units were completed every year between 1991 and 1996. That figure increased to approximately 45,000 in the late 1990s, to 76,000 in 2003 and to 88,000 last year. Such a significant increase in housing output must help to solve the problems in the sector. The combined effect of the slowdown in the market and the increase in house completions will be to strike a better balance between supply and demand, which will act in the interests of buyers.

The Green Party believes the new conditions in the housing market offer the Government an opportunity to increase social housing output. The national development plan contains a commitment to complete 9,000 new social units each year. If the Government continues to do a good job in trying to meet these targets and achieves them, it will help to soften the landing in terms of house prices.