There have been many announcements by Government of initiatives to address the housing crisis. Nevertheless, there remains an ongoing crisis at all levels across the housing sector. In Dublin alone, 1,200 families - including 2,500 children - are living in hotel accommodation. Last November, there were 6,985 men, women and children in emergency accommodation throughout the State, a 31% increase on the number in November 2015. Unfortunately, there is no evidence of additional supply coming through by way of the provision of social housing. This has led to an over-dependence on the housing assistance payment, HAP, scheme, which uses the lower end of the private market to supply homes to families. Rents are at an artificial high across the country notwithstanding the welcome legislation that was passed last December to limit rent increases to 4% in particular areas. Unfortunately, that measure will not alleviate the problem in the short to medium term because it addresses only future increases and does not deal with the existing artificially high rents across the State.

Simon Communities of Ireland delivers supports and services to more than 8,300 people every year who are experiencing homelessness or are at risk of becoming homeless. Today it published its latest Locked Out Of the Market report illustrating the stark realities of rental increases across the country and how, despite modest increases in social housing payment caps, 80% of rental properties are beyond the reach of rent supplement and HAP recipients. Private rental supply, the report notes, is down 44% since May 2015. The report shows the average number of properties available to rent decreased by 19% in the 12 months since the last report in August 2015. There is a growing gap between rent supplement and HAP caps and current market rents. The report confirms the number of properties available to that cohort is shrinking, particularly for individuals and couples. Simon Communities Ireland personnel work at the coalface and they are extremely worried that if things continue as at present, the crisis will deepen in the short term.

Today's report from Simon Communities of Ireland is further evidence that the imposition of rent caps should not have been limited to Dublin and Cork. I assure the Minister that the crisis is affecting all parts of the State. In my own constituency of Mayo, I have families coming to me on a weekly basis seeking help to find homes. These people have given up hope of ever getting a place in social housing and are seeking my assistance to secure a private rental property. It is next to impossible to find a three-bedroom family home in Castlebar that falls within current HAP limits. Westport is a no-go area as far as affordable accommodation is concerned. More must be done and done soon if we are to meet the challenges presented by an artificially high rental sector.

Simon Communities of Ireland has called for the rent certainty measures to be extended as a matter of priority. Will the Minister indicate when the reviews of areas outside of Dublin and Cork will be completed and when the rent increase limits will be extended to those areas? What does the Government intend to do to address the supply issue? Without more supply, the problem will only get worse.

I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue, to which the Government is giving intense priority and in respect of which we have devised solutions for the short, medium and long term. In terms of social housing, we made an unprecedented commitment to the delivery of 47,000 new homes. These are to be constructed through various agencies. That is a massive commitment to social housing, which was neglected for more than a decade.

Short-term measures to address the housing situation include the extension of the HAP scheme to Dublin from March. Some 12,000 families were housed last year under that scheme. Under the homeless HAP initiative launched by the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government, Deputy Coveney, 550 families in Dublin were accommodated last year. That is a significant intervention. Last year, 1,000 homes were purchased to provide immediate accommodation. In addition, there is a commitment to provide 350 rapid-build homes in Dublin. In regard to the rental cap, the Minister will very soon indicate the areas of extension beyond the current locations of Dublin and Cork cities. We have seen very high increases as a result of supply constraints. The rental cap is a short-term measure to deal with that and will provide certainty for people by imposing a cap on rental increases.

On the wider front of housing supply, it is encouraging to see housing starts showing considerable growth at last, in Dublin and in other parts of the country. The numbers remain well short of where they need to be but the measures the Minister is taking to streamline the planning processes and make it easier to access finance and to build will assist in accelerating the housing supply. We all agree that increasing supply is the key solution, both in the private sector and the public sector. We allowed a situation to develop where public sector direct provision fell away to levels that were way below those of any other country while, at the same time, relying too heavily on the private rental sector to deal with social housing. The measures the Government has introduced will help to restore the balance in that regard. We have a balanced set of measures that are being rigorously driven forward and which include provision for quarterly reporting. The Minister is intensely aware of the huge number of families that are depending on the success of his strategy.

I thank the Minister for his reply. We have had major commitments from the Government in terms of building housing, but they are slow to translate to action. There are still 2,000 vacant homes awaiting refurbishment across the various local authorities. The housing repair and leasing initiative that was piloted in Cavan and Waterford seems to be going well, but it needs to be extended. My constituency would certainly benefit from such an initiative.

Simon Communities of Ireland has called for a twice-yearly review of the HAP increases. Will the Government commit to facilitate that, given the acute challenges outlined in today's report? Out of the ten areas covered by the study, which included major towns and cities, only eight properties were available for rent to single people and only 11 were suitable for couples. There are plenty of initiatives being launched but we are not seeing the effect in increased supply. A twice-yearly review of the HAP increases should be initiated.

There has been a significant increase in the level of activity under all social programmes. The number of people who will be accommodated under those programmes in the coming year is 21,000, an increase from 14,000 two years ago. There is an intensification of efforts in this regard and it is delivering in terms of supply. The concept of extending the homeless HAP scheme beyond the current areas is under active consideration by the Minister and it is hoped to do so later in the year.

On rental reviews, the Minister will examine the effectiveness of the relevant measures based on the evidence. We need to get supply moving and focus on the initiatives in the areas of purchase, rapid build, the homeless HAP scheme and so on. Those measures offer a particular targeted intervention for the categories of persons about whom we are especially concerned, namely, the 1,200 families living in hotel-type accommodation. Those are areas of intense concern and the Minister is focused on delivering for the families concerned.