The Tánaiste made the comment in an interview with Morning Ireland, saying that 30,000 new homes were built in the country last year.

Figures released by the Banking and Payments Federation Ireland (BPFI) yesterday projected 27,000 new home completions in the country for the year 2023, with 2,108 new homes commenced in January, the highest for the January period since 2008.

The Tánaiste comments come after just last week, the government refused an extension on the current evictions ban, which is set to end on 31st March.

"We need to keep our existing people in the rental market and bring more people into the market", Martin said. He claimed that an extension of the current eviction ban would undermine those goals.

The government’s decision to end the ban has been lambasted by opposing members of Dáil Éireann, including Sinn Féin and People Before Profit.

Sinn Féin have put forth a motion for vote on extending the eviction ban until January of next year, which TDs will vote on the motion next Wednesday.

The Tánaiste referred to the motion as “cynical”.