On page 21 of the programme for Government, there is a commitment to increasing significantly and expediting the delivery of social housing units. This is not happening in Limerick city. Last September, I informed the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government, Deputy Eoghan Murphy, that there were more than 70 council houses boarded up across Limerick city. Today, the bulk of those properties remain boarded up. At the time, I specifically mentioned No. 55 Shanboley Road. A family was told that it would be allocated that unit, but the house is still empty. No. 13 Lee Estate has been boarded up for three years. No. 65 Scanlon Park in Castleconnell has been boarded up for two years.

A question, please.

Shamefully, these properties and many others are lying idle while 3,000 people in Limerick are on the housing list.

Ceist. This is a statement.

The Government's housing plan is failing dramatically. When will something be done to address the large number of empty council houses, not just in Limerick, but across the country?

Two types of properties are involved. Under the regeneration scheme, properties might be deemed to be lying idle for the purpose of regeneration works. I recognise that some of those properties in Limerick have been brought back into use early on in that scheme. Regarding voids, I have made it clear a number of times that funding has been made available to Limerick. Limerick City Council was told last September that, if it needed more money to tackle voids, we would provide it. There is taxpayer's money available for that. More than 9,500 void properties have been brought back into use, building on the work done by Deputy Jan O'Sullivan and the Government. There should be no long-term voids left. Resources are available. If Limerick has houses that can be brought back into use, the money will be made available.