A new all-party committee to look at how to deal with the housing and homeless crisis has been established by the Dáil.

TDs are making statements to the Dáil on housing tonight - saying there's an urgent need to find a fix.

Acting Environment Minister Alan Kelly says 31 actions were taken in the last 21 months - and he says no matter what is done now won't fix the problem overnight.

"I have sought to tackle this issue from every possible angle to improve the situation for everyone in this country... but the fruits of that work will take time to become apparent.

"We have laid the foundations, colleagues, but the solutions will, like any house, take time to build and to bring forward."