Timmy Dooley (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

It is well recognised that today is a momentous day in the fight against Covid with the first person on the island of Ireland having received the latest vaccine at around 8 o'clock this morning. Hopefully, that heralds the beginning of the end of this enormous crisis that has bedevilled societies right across the globe and impacted on the lives of so many. We have seen many lives lost and many lives affected through the loss of loved ones and the economic upheaval that the crisis has created right across the globe. Hopefully, the end is now in sight. That brings me to my next point. As we move from, it is hoped, the beginning of the end of this crisis, we in this part of Europe are just facing into the beginning of a very significant negative situation for the island of Ireland, namely, Brexit. To some extent the debate on and the concerns about Brexit have been pushed to the back of the minds of many because of the virus. However, judging from any of the studies that have been published recently and are updated regularly, it is clear, regardless of the arrangement or agreement that is reached in the coming days, if one is reached, that there will be a very significant negative impact on the economy of this State and on the lives of many. It is well recognised that our food sector exports so much from the island of Ireland to the United Kingdom and that this will have a very negative impact on the lives of rural dwellers and people who are involved in processing and the primary area of food production.

However, it is not just that. Reports out today would indicate that those who live in cities and towns and who consume food containing perhaps some ingredients originating in Ireland but processed ultimately in the UK will be affected. The tariffs associated with a no-deal Brexit will have a significant negative impact on the livelihoods of people who are food consumers. We need to address this quickly not only from a legislative point of view but also as part of a wider debate in the coming days. I think many people had grown tired of Brexit and the desire to understand what is going on. They just got sick of it and have not really got to a point at which they understand the implications of what is facing them, regardless, as I said, of whether there is no deal or a good deal. There is no such thing as a good deal, sadly, in this instance.

That brings me to my third and final point, which concerns a report published today by the Banking and Payments Federation of Ireland on the growth in our housing stock and the achievements in that regard. Notwithstanding the stoppages in the construction sector during the early months of the year due to the lockdown in the economy, approximately 18,000 or 19,000 homes will be completed this year. The required number, however, is probably close to twice that, or approximately 35,000 homes. Projections for next year would suggest that we will complete about the same number of residential units. That will not be enough, because the projections for the next three to five years are such that house completions will need to be at approximately 35,000. As we head towards the end of the year, as we move out of one crisis and face the next, we have to be careful we do not allow these really important issues to blind us to the really important domestic issues. Housing and health and the lack of continued effort over successive Governments to deal with them have led us to a point at which the housing crisis is still there. It may not make the headlines every week and may not be talked about in this House every week but it is still there. While I accept and recognise that Departments are working very constructively to address these issues, from our point of view, as part of the overall Legislature, we cannot take our foot off the pedal in reminding the various organs of State how important it is to continue the efforts in this regard and to try to reach that critical target of 35,000 units per year.