The cost-of-living crisis has dominated discussions in the Dáil, and rightly so, because so many people are fearful of what they face in the winter. It is the reason so many people will come out on the streets for the cost of living coalition's demonstration on Saturday, 24 September. The other connected crisis that will also prompt people to join the demonstration is an ever-worsening housing and homelessness crisis, in particular the spike in the number of people being evicted because landlords are selling properties. People are terrified they will face homelessness over the coming months through no fault of their own.

I want to make a very specific and positive proposal. The Government has had a windfall in corporate tax receipts. I understand we cannot depend on this over the long term but the Government could use this money to purchase properties where people face evictions into homelessness through no fault of their own. It would be a good investment. It would stop people going into homeless services and save money on homeless expenditure, the rental accommodation scheme and housing assistance payments. I ask the Government to consider a major programme of purchase in these situations.

I thank the Deputy. We will certainly give it consideration. The Government has been criticised in the past, by the way, for buying properties on the private market for social housing as opposed to building them. The Deputy may even have been one of those who has been critical of us for doing so.

I have not, actually.

Sometimes it does make sense to buy properties on the private market, in the instances the Deputy has mentioned, for example, or where a particular type of property may be needed for a large family or a family who has a member with disabilities. What the Deputy has said about corporate tax is also valid. We should not rely on our corporate tax receipts to fund day-to-day spending. Capital is not day-to-day spending. Once we buy something, we do not have to buy it twice. Once something is built, it does not need to be built twice. Many people are pushing the narrative that the Government is somehow being reckless in committing corporate tax receipts to day-to-day spending. In reality we are not doing so. We are massively increasing capital budgets across the board, building new schools, new hospitals and more social housing, and purchasing private assets in some cases. This is not spending that has to be repeated.