asked the Minister for Local Government if he has received any representations from local authorities concerning his instruction to defer additional forward land acquisition; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Forward Land Acquisition.
10.
I have not issued instructions to housing authorities to defer additional forward land acquisition. What I have done is to notify them that additional forward land acquisitions, which are not vital to the local authority's housing programme in the next three years, should be deferred for the time being. Bearing in mind that local authorities have sites for almost 94,000 dwellings already in their possession, I am quite satisfied that this requirement is a very reasonable one in existing economic circumstances. Cases of Special difficulty may, of course, arise from time to time and I will consider these on their merits. I have received representations from two housing authorities concerning the notification.
Of course, the Minister has issued an instruction. Is he aware that this decision by him is a disastrous short-term decision——
No, Sir.
——and that, in fact, it places future house building in jeopardy?
No. Deputy Faulkner has made a statement that is not correct. Deputy Faulkner should not do that kind of thing. I have the circular but it is not in order to read it and, therefore, I cannot do so. I will send a copy to Deputy Faulkner who obviously has not seen it.
I have a copy here.
It says two things: one is that they should not go beyound their requirements for three years and, secondly, that if they are in any diffculty they should bring the matter to my notice and I will be glad to consider it favourably. Under those circumstances I do not believe local authorities should continue to but an awful lot more than they require with money which should be used for building houses.
Would the Minister agree that he is still using up in the main land which was acquired under the Fianna Fáil Government——
In some cases, yes.
——and that he is making no provision for the future?
That is a lot of nonsense. Deputy Faulkner was here two nights on a debate and he did not make that rather ridiculous suggestion when he was talking here.
The Minister appears to think that when he makes all sorts of charges, this is fact. I made my case on the Private Members' motion, which was not, I might add, answered by the Minister. May I ask the Minister in relation to even the limited amount to land which is being permitted to be purchased will he make sufficient funds available to service it?
Deputy Faulkner is asking a question like the question, "When did you stop beating your wife?" The position is that I sent a circular which said that additional forward land acquisition should be deferred for the time being unless it is vital to the programme for the next three years; that costs arising from land acquisition agreements already made or from confirmed CPOs should be met in accordance with circular N 574, 26th June, 1974. That is the answer to Deputy Faulkner.
Now we know who told the lie a forthnight ago.
The word "lie" ought not to be attributed to any Member of this House.
The answer is that the Minister is cutting down the amount of land being acquired and is using up the land acquired under Fianna Fáil and in a few years' time the whole housing programme will be in jeopardy.
We built 26,000 houses more than you did, as I told you, in three years.
Is the Minister saying that if a local authority has enough land for a certain programme of houses building over a number of years, even if suitable land becomes available, as happens from time to time, the local authority is prevented from the forward buying of land for housing?
Not quite.
This is very serious, particularly in the county I represent.
What I am saying is that if local authorities have a supply of land which they consider will do them for three or four years forward they should not purchase every bit of land that becomes available in the area but if certain land becomes available which either they require for a period within the three years or may require for a longer period and there is a danger that the land will not be available at a later stage, they are entitled to notify me of that fact and I will be glad to consider the matter favourably.
Further arising ——
Deputy Faulkner, a moment. I am very perturbed about the slow progress being made with Questions today. I ask for the co-operation of Members in making appreciable progress in dealing with other Members' questions also.
The Chair cannot deny that it gets co-operation from me.
A final supplementary.
Is it not a fact that what the Minister has done in making this decision is to restrict the buying of land by local authorities and that this will have the effect in a few years' time of seriously curtailing house building?
The Deputy has already made that point. This is repetition.
Some of the local authorities were the biggest landowners in the area. They had a lot more land than they would use in this century and Deputy Faulkner knows this and it would be ridiculous to allow them to continue to buy land all around them which they did not need in the next ten years.
The facts are as I have stated.
They are not. I bow to the Deputy's superior knowledge.