(Cavan-Monaghan) asked the Minister for the Environment the lowest value of an 870 approximately square foot house for which a certificate of reasonable value was issued in June 1977, and June 1978.

15.

(Cavan-Monaghan) asked the Minister for the Environment the lowest value of a 1,250 approximately square foot house for which a certificate of reasonable value was issued in June 1977, and June 1978.

With the permission of the Ceann Comhairle I propose to take Questions Nos. 14 and 15 together.

As statistics of house prices are not kept by reference to floor areas I regret that the information sought cannot be supplied.

(Cavan-Monaghan): Surely the Minister has information in his Department indicating the prices of various types of houses particularly with reference to the 1,250 square feet-area house which happens to coincide with the house for which grants are available? Is the Minister telling us that there are not available statistics showing the various prices in respect of certificates of reasonable value fixed for houses of 1,250 square feet?

The position is that to ascertain the lowest price approved for house of specified floor area there would be required the expenditure of staff time that would be totally out of proportion to the usefulness of the exercise. A comparison of such prices would be of very doubtful value because the lowest price in any category could well be a freak price and completely unrepresentative of the generality of prices. For example, the lowest price in a certain county approved in June 1977 was £7,200 for a detached bungalow of 1,109 square feet while the comparative figure in June 1978 was £8,000 for a terraced house of 852 square feet. The relevant quarterly averages were £13,133 —that was for the second quarter in 1977—and £16,264 for a quarter in 1978. This shows how untypical were the lowest prices. A freakishly low price can be due to a house being built in a remote area in respect of which there was a negligible site cost or to a house having been built and sold a considerable time prior to the application for a CRV or to a house being built by a housing co-operative for a member, the work including some voluntary labour.

(Cavan-Monaghan): Would the Minister agree that between June 1977 and June 1978, house prices increased dramatically—by 33? per cent?

That is a separate question.

I agree that prices increased substantially during a period of 12 months but we have gone into this on at least two occasions here. The Government have taken steps to rectify the situation and this move is being reflected in house prices now.

(Cavan-Monaghan): Have not the prices increased out of all proportion to the cost of building material?

I am calling Question No. 16.

Is not the Minister's apparent reluctance to give the information required very much at variance with the information given to similar questions concerning costs and figures in respect of CRVs on 26 April 1978 when seven questions on these matters were asked and answered adequately? Why is the information not given now which was apparently given then?

Question No. 16.

I have given the reason why the information cannot be supplied now. I do not know what the position was in April 1978.

These questions are mainly creating argument. Deputy Keating asked for one last question, so I am moving on to Question No. 16.