Local Authority Housing Provision
Quinn questioned whether Government policy was steering local-authority applicants toward private housing and why few local-authority homes had been built; the Minister cited increased funding and construction difficulties. FitzGerald said research showed building volumes had not increased and money had gone toward higher prices and builder profits, while the Minister said he had not studied the report.
The Minister of State gave a very lengthy reply to a couple of two-line questions. In his reply he stated that part of the reason for the excessive in-crease in the price of houses over the building increase was due to extra demand. In view of his own statement, will the Minister state if it is still the Government's policy with regard to people who have applied for local authority housing and who are on the housing list to try to push them out of the local authority housing sector and into the private sector, thereby increasing the demand?
Comment on this
More money has been made available to local authorities this year in order to rehouse people in need.
Comment on this
If that is the case, why have so few houses been built and why is the Minister so disappointed with the performance?
Comment on this
Is the Minister aware of a report published by the Economic and Social Research Institute showing that under Fianna Fáil there has been no increase in the volume of house building and that any money provided has gone into higher prices for houses and, as the Minister's reply divulges when read carefully, into higher profits for builders?