I want to address a deeply concerning situation affecting Mayo under the Housing for All programme. We find ourselves still in a perplexing predicament where we have no targets set for affordable housing schemes for the county. Recently, the local authority undertook an external affordability exercise for Westport, which resulted in the Department's approval of 13 affordable housing units in the area. During this exercise, it became apparent a staggering 775 households had expressed sincere interest in acquiring an affordable house through the council. In light of these findings and baffled as to why the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage has not yet established targets for affordable housing in Mayo, Mayo County Council is, thankfully, now actively pursuing a separate application for affordable housing in Castlebar.

I have called for the establishment of this scheme many times in the Chamber. I respectfully call on the Department to set a realistic target of 100 affordable housing units in Mayo for the period 2023 to 2024. This target aligns to the urgency and gravity of the situation, offering a tangible solution to the housing crisis our county is grappling with.

The Deputy raises a very important point. We want all local authorities to build under the affordable housing programme using the local authority affordable housing fund. We will encourage all local authorities, including that in Mayo, to put applications to the Department and we are very receptive of that. The original assessment was based on whether a second-hand house for sale within a local authority area was at a level deemed to be affordable. In the case of some of the local authorities, that is what arose but at the moment, we are looking at designing specific targets for local authorities.

However, the message is loud and clear, and I have been to all the local authorities. They wish to build affordable houses and we want them to go into the cost-rental market as well. We want them to put applications into the Department. Setting targets is something we are looking at as well, but we have a proactive model in place.