THE urban sprawl situation in Kenmare described by John Joe O’Brien (Irish Examiner letters, December 16) is being replicated throughout the country.

WHO are the real beneficiaries of the so-called housing boom? Banks with their 40-year mortgages, developers with their constant building and landowners with the inflated prices being paid for construction sites.

THE decision of the British government to limit one-off housing in open countryside in Northern Ireland should be welcomed by everyone interested in sustainable development on the island.