Construction BUSINESS

The Minister for Housing has said that increasing housing supply alone will not be enough to reduce prices.

Speaking at the launch of the second quarterly progress report on the Housing for All strategy, Darragh O’Brien said that Government is on target to meet housing supply targets.

However, he reiterated that there are no silver bullets in terms of improving affordability, adding that there are several affordability measures which his department is taking.

The Government’s progress report shows that during 2021, 30,724 new homes were commenced and over 39,000 planning permissions were granted in the 12 months to end-September 2021.

Construction level employment levels are now close to pre-pandemic levels.

€10bn will be required on an annual basis to meet housing targets of 40,000 a year.

At present there is €6bn of private sector funding in construction, but there is a need to increase this by €4bn.

146,300 people are now working in the construction sector. There is also growing interest for employment permits from abroad, with 27,000 applications in 2021.

Tánaiste Leo Varadkar told a press briefing today that there have been delays in processing these requests, but an action plan has been deployed to reduce turnaround times.

The Government is also seeking to establish a Construction Technology Centre, which would focus on innovation in the sector.

Mr Varadkar said that there is strong interest in terms of tenders to establish the centre.

He conceded that the “score card” for 2021 is not “unblemished”, with delays in the delivery of some actions.

The Government has also been criticised for low levels of affordable purchase and cost rental homes delivered.

Previous answers to a parliamentary question from Social Democrats Housing Spokesperson Cian O’Callaghan showed just 25 cost rental units, delivered by the State in 2021, were moved into last year and no affordable purchase homes were occupied last year either.

Meanwhile, at the same press briefing, the Taoiseach accused Sinn Féin of “ruthlessly exploiting the housing crisis for their advantage”.

Following on from a tense exchange during Leaders’ Questions today, Micheál Martin said that Sinn Féin were trying to portray Government as some sort of “elite, upper class cabal”.

He said that when he looks at the likes of Eoin Ó Broin, Sinn Féin’s Housing Spokesperson, he considers such jibes “a bit rich”.

Mr Martin said the party should “stop lecturing people as if somehow you’re the working-class hero”.

Housing investment ‘too low’ – Sinn Féin

Responding today to the Government’s progress report, Sinn Féin’s Housing Spokesperson Eoin Ó Broin said that he could not see “anything in today’s very, very long and wordy report that indicates any progress”.

Deputy Ó Broin said that investment is too low, and the overall policy is wrong, adding that he could not see how the housing situation would improve in the next 12 to 24 months.

Eoin Ó Broin reiterated his party’s policy of investing €3bn in social and affordable housing.

Source RTE