By Gráinne Ní Aodha, PA
The housing crisis has been highlighted as a key area of focus for both the opposition and government as politicians return from the summer recess.
Cabinet met on Tuesday to discuss various issues, including three different memos on housing including one giving an update on housing supply.
Taoiseach Simon Harris has said he expects the housing targets to be revised up to at least 50,000 a year from 2025, and said he expects a decision will be made on this by October or November.
He said he expects 40,000 new homes to be built by the end of this year, an increase on 32,695 built last year and surpassing the 2024 target of 33,450.
The Housing for All target for this year comprises 9,300 new social homes and 6,400 affordable and cost rental homes.
Mr Harris said it was “encouraging” that housing supply was increasing and cited an observation from Focus Ireland chief executive Pat Dennigan that there were some “chinks of light”.
“It’s encouraging that completion to commencements, planning permissions, mortgage drawdowns, are all moving in the right direction. But I also know that the scale of ambition needs to be increased.”
Tánaiste Micheál Martin said that when he entered the coalition government in July 2020, 20,000 houses were being built a year, which has increased to almost 40,000 houses.
“That’s a doubling of output. We need to increase that even further,” he said on Tuesday morning.
“I would like to get to a situation where we would be in the next number of years doing 60,000 per annum, but that’s a very significant challenge, and it means that the existing mechanisms and schemes that we have provided for should be allowed to continue.”
He said schemes such as the Help-to-Buy scheme, the First Home scheme and the grants for derelict and vacant housing were contributing to 400-500 people a week drawing down their first mortgage.
The Fianna Fáil leader also hit out at a housing plan launched by opposition party Sinn Féin on Monday, arguing that it could slow down the supply of housing.
Sinn Féin is proposing to spend €39 billion on housing over the next five years to deliver 300,000 homes, introduce a three-year emergency ban on rent increases for all existing and new tenancies, set up a way for direct building by the state and enshrining the right to a home in the Constitution.
“Our job is to get houses built as fast as we possibly can and as many as we possibly can,” Mr Martin said.
“I think there’s a responsibility on commentators and everybody else to drill down in terms of what Sinn Fein are proposing, because the number of houses they are saying they will build in five years isn’t possible if you have to wait around for a change or a replacement to the Land Development Agency, and legislation will be needed on that.
“If you need legislation in terms of affordable home schemes, in terms of who owns the land and who owns the house and all of the legal implications of that. You will need legislation to develop a new public housing body for Dublin, all of that takes time. We know this from the experience of the last four years.”
For the latest Waterford News and Sport, tune into WLR News on the hour and download the WLR App for news on demand.
