Maria Byrne (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for being here. This is an important topic that we are all committed to in the context of delivery. Following on from what Senator Ahearn said, and paying tribute to the two previous Ministers with responsibility in this area, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Deputy Coveney, and former Deputy Eoghan Murphy, 85,000 private homes and 24,000 social homes were delivered. The Opposition spokespeople referred to there having been no delivery and targets not being met. That is not the case and it is important to put those figures on record.

Turning to the future, the Minister was in Limerick recently at the launch of the land development plan. Most of the eight areas concerned are on my doorstep. I represented those areas as a councillor for 17 years. I also live close by. This is a fantastic plan. I fully support it. I worry about one thing, though, and this question was posed on the day of the launch. It will be four or five years before we see a brick laid on the site. That is my one fear. I welcome the fact that local authorities have been given extra funding for the refurbishment of vacant homes. Some council properties have been lying vacant for a long time and we end up with many such sites in urban areas. We must look at this aspect.

While there is an emphasis in this plan in that regard, we must also look at more stringent ways of delivering faster in this respect. I state that because some properties I have seen have been vacant for a long time and they are still not renovated. I do not know if there is some kind of glitch in communications between the council and the Department, but this is an aspect that should be looked at in greater detail. I welcome the plan and specifically the emphasis on affordable homes. That is something many people are striving to work towards. Some 2,100 homes had delivered so far under the auspices of the help-to-buy scheme. It would be great if we could increase that figure. It is a good scheme and it has helped many people who cannot afford to buy their own home.