Surplus or under-utilised land held by the State should be used to ease the housing crisis, according to Labour Party environment spokesperson Mr Eamon Gilmore.
The Dún Laoghaire TD made the comments this morning in response to the order from Minister of State for Finance Mr Tom Parlon for an assessment of State assets with a view to selling off surplus assets.
Mr Parlon sees any sales as a revenue-generating exercise, but Mr Gilmore said if any land or buildings are available they should be retained by the State and used for housing.
Mr Gilmore said: "The major problem facing local authorities in regard to social and affordable housing programmes is the acute lack of building land. In many cases local authorities are simply outbid by speculators and private developers, when land comes on the market.
"Even where there is surplus office space owned by the government, consideration should be given to converting it to living accommodation before it is sold off".
Over 50,000 people are on housing lists, and many local authorities cannot afford to use the socially affordable housing scheme, which allows 20 per cent of new developments to be sold to the authority which can then offer the homes through various public-housing schemes.
Mr Parlon proposes putting the proceeds for the sale of assets such as Garda barracks in regional towns into a fund to pay for the National Development Plan.