COMMENT

LAST week’s framework agreement with Priory Hall residents was a victory for common sense and decency.

Dr Martin McAleese is to oversee the implementation of the framework to ensure that all Priory Hall homeowners are fully involved and fairly treated. He is a solid choice for this role.

Dr McAleese will chair an oversight board, including representatives of the Priory Hall residents, the Irish Banking Federation, Dublin City Council and relevant Government departments and agencies.

It has taken the homeowners two years to get this far, which is shameful. The emotional impact and the stress caused to the residents should not be underestimated. It took the suicide of Fiachra Daly and the bravery of his partner to concentrate minds and find a workable solution.

While Priory Hall is hopefully an extreme case of shoddy building practices during the Celtic Tiger era, we still can’t be certain that more controversies of this nature won’t arise in the future. If they do, the deal offered to Priory Hall residents last week could set a costly precedent.

Likewise, residents affected by pyrite continue to live in defective homes while the Government works towards a solution to end their misery. It’s a step in the right direction – but it’s only a step.

To be fair, problems like Priory Hall and pyrite were not of this Government’s making and are a legacy of the Fianna Fail-led building boom.

Fine Gael and Labour will ultimately stand judged on how they handle this mess. On the face of it, they’ve made a belated but promising start.

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