There are so many silver bullets flying around it’s a wonder someone hasn’t been killed in the crossfire. We’re in the middle of “think-in” season for the political parties, and because housing is the issue of the day ideas about how the budget should be used to solve the crisis are being banged out.

Just because they are meant to be thinking doesn’t mean politicians aren’t playing their usual schoolyard games. Much of what has happened so far has involved targeting opponents. Sinn Féin, rather lacking self-awareness, attacked Fine Gael “posh boys”, misunderstanding that in Ireland today age is as important a division on housing as class. Ask a 25-year-old what they want house prices to do, and you’ll get a very different response from