Michelle Mulherin (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I agree with respect to standards and we know that sometimes the lack of standards, even in the private sector, can come back to bite the Government, because the person who buys a house or has it built may lose out. There are issues and they have been explained to me, even with respect to my own local authority. Notwithstanding the modular build not being precluded, there seems to be a lack of clarity around what is allowed. The Minister of State did not specifically address the issue of accessory dwellings, which could see an independent unit built on an existing site as a shorter-term solution. We are talking about 10,000 homeless people. The Minister of State mentioned the rapid delivery programme, but those are modest numbers in that context. Does the Minister of State envision more development of accessory dwelling units, both in country areas and in towns where there is a site big enough within the proper rules and health safety regulations? Could there be more incentives from the Government to deliver these types of unit, which provide short to medium-term housing that is so badly needed?