Anthony Lawlor (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Some of the houses being built by local authorities nowadays are to a very high standard. I attended a public private partnership meeting between a builder and representatives of a local authority. The quality of the houses the local authorities build is outstanding and is a credit to them.

I will support the Bill because it is important to have regulation of AHBs, given that, as the Minister noted, there are 552 of them. There have been finance issues with one or two of them in Kildare.It is important that there is some regulation in this area.

What sort of budget will be required in order to run the regulator’s office? How many staff will be required? The Minister removed the section on fees and introduced two small amendments in respect of appeals. I was hoping that some of the fees would go towards the cost of the office itself.

The Land Development Agency will be a significant influencer, particularly in the context of the landbank held by the State. Is there a possibility that some of that land will be made available to high-quality AHBs? As Senator Kelleher mentioned, there are smaller housing bodies which might find it difficult to acquire land. Could they work in conjunction with the Land Development Agency to ensure that they will not be squeezed out of the market, leaving only three or four main housing bodies?