If the Deputy will let me answer I will tell him. The NESC is doing a major study on this issue — we referred it to NESC — and it is important that the two reports are published together. That would be helpful. We will then have the differing assessments, and I would be interested to see the NESC report on these issues, which are complex.
I and I am sure all Members, appreciate the work of the All-Party Committee on the Constitution which paves the way in one particular area for dealing with these issues. The NESC report, which should be published soon, is badly needed. I would be interested to see what is in the report, although I have no foreknowledge at this stage of its views on this issue, particularly in terms of land policy, its usability and availability and all the questions that surround that. We must have a factual discussion on these issues to come to conclusions.
Even though there is not a simple pathway forward, based on some of the issues that have been signalled already, I am struck by the level of activity under Part V which I have seen while travelling throughout the country. That is beginning to bed down and managers and the various developers in different parts of the country are putting much better methodologies in place, which are speedier, and we can see from the figures what has actually been built and what is beginning to come through the system.
There is another aspect I find difficult to understand. Ten days ago I opened an affordable housing scheme. It happened to be in Tramore, in my constituency, but no one would consider Tramore to be a poor or backward area. Property in the area can be very expensive but this affordable housing scheme consisted of three bedroom houses, with three bathrooms, the main bathroom being en suite. They had fine gardens and were finished extremely well, yet the price of each house was €118,000. To say I was surprised at the value is to understate how I felt, particularly in terms of the quality of the houses which were built by a major national company, not a small local builder. I have opened other schemes throughout the country and the prices of those houses are €138,000 and €140,000, which leads to some questions.
I am coming around to the view that in regard to this issue the problem is largely focused on Dublin — that was probably always the case — in terms of people getting housing here. I am aware in other county council areas, and Deputy Allen will be aware of this in Cork and other areas, that there was a shortage of people to take up the affordable houses being built. That is not common to particular areas; it happens throughout the country.
We need a rational debate on this issue and what the Oireachtas committee has said points the way forward. I am enamoured by the view that where land is becoming available, it is vital that the local authorities' land banks do not diminish and that we continue to enhance them, particularly for housing. If we do that, and the report highlights an existing land use value, plus 25%, to the local authorities, that would be extremely helpful throughout the country, not just in Dublin. If the Deputy is asking me my view, I am certainly positively disposed to that. In fact, I believe it is necessary.
