Seanad debates

Friday, 18 June 2021

Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Report and Final Stages

 

9:30 am

Photo of John CumminsJohn Cummins (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I have listened to Senator Warfield and Sinn Féin talk about the shared equity scheme, prior to the Bill even being published. They had written off this scheme and said it would do X, Y and Z, before the Bill was even published. We keep hearing the references to the London School of Economics. What one will not hear Senator Warfield referring to is the UK's audit office, the equivalent of our Comptroller and Auditor General, which stated it increased supply in London by 14% with only 1% inflation. One will not hear Senator Warfield or Sinn Féin referencing that.

The shared equity scheme will bridge the gap between what an individual or a family can afford under the macro-credential rules and the cost of the unit. We all know those people. They are our family, friends and neighbours.This Government wants to assist them by bridging the gap to what the market is charging and helping people to get a foot on the ladder. It is not surprising that Sinn Féin wants to oppose that because it is against home ownership. We are in the business of assisting individuals and families in getting onto that ladder. We make no apology for that. It is worth noting that when the ESRI was before the joint committee addressing this issue, it stated that demand without supply-side measures might result in inflationary pressures. It did not comment on the fact that we were going to increase the number of affordable purchase homes under Part V by 10%, which the Minister will introduce on Report Stage in the Dáil, nor did it comment on the local authority affordable purchase scheme, which is also a supply-side measure. I argue that the shared equity scheme is a supply-side measure but that is a debate which we will not agree on. This scheme will be availed of by many individuals and families and it will assist them in getting their foot on the ladder. That is what we are about as a Government. Just like the help to buy scheme that has assisted 22,000 individuals and families to purchase their first home, which Sinn Féin also opposes, this scheme will deliver for individuals and families and we make no apology for that as a Government.

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