Labour has claimed there is more than enough land in Ireland to "get to grips" with the current homeless crisis.

The party's housing spokesperson, Jan O'Sullivan, called on the government to "pick up the slack" from where the private sector has failed.

She made the announcement after the latest ESRI report revealed house prices could increase by 20% over the next three years, while rent is also up by 11% in the year to September, according to Daft.ie.

Deputy O'Sullivan TD, also urged the Government to introduce a national affordable housing scheme.

She said: "Supply is clearly a critical issue here; not enough homes are being built. But we need to ensure that the homes that are built are affordable to rent and buy.

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"The State has more than enough land to get to grips with this crisis, and must support the local authorities to ensure the 700 publicly owned sites that have already been identified for mixed tenure development, are used to deliver social and affordable housing.

"That is why the State simply must introduce a national affordable housing scheme.

"The report from Daft.ie also shows the cost of renting a home, particularly in Dublin, is continuing to rise at an alarming rate.

"Many of these renters are those that are also trying to save to buy a home, and so are caught in a vicious cycle of high rents and an inability to save for a deposit.

"Ireland is moving in the direction of other European cities, where renting over home ownership is becoming more prevalent, and so we need to protect our rental sector and those tenants in it.

"If rent is not going to be linked to the CPI, as the Labour Party has been calling for, we need to see Rent Pressure Zones extended and ensure tenants have security of tenure."

(CD/LM)