Darragh O’Brien rejects that housing lost out in budget funding

By Gráinne Ní Aodha, PA

Darragh O’Brien has rejected the suggestion that housing had lost out on funding as part of preparations for Budget 2025 in October.

But the Housing Minister said that when the new housing targets are increased in the autumn, further funding will be required.

Research by the Economic and Social Research Institute found that an average of 44,000 new housing units are needed every year to keep up with population growth.

Mr O’Brien has said the research, funded by his Department, would be taken into as it revises the housing targets for Ireland to come into effect next year.

In response to criticism from Sinn Féin that additional spending on the housing sector was not included in the budget package of €8.3 billion announced by Government this week, Mr O’Brien rejected that he had been squeezed out.

“In relation to additional capital, this year we have €5.1 billion in capital to deliver across our housing programme.

“In the period of time over the summer when we’re revising our housing targets, undoubtedly when they’re increased, we will require additional public investment, but also very importantly, additional private investment.

“This year, about €14 billion in capital will be invested in housing, €5.1 billion of that is public funds, the remainder is private.”

Mr O’Brien also accused Sinn Féin of not producing a costed housing plan and said the need for private funding in the housing sector was something the party’s housing spokesperson Eoin Ó Broin “should reflect upon”.

He was speaking at the opening of five social-housing apartments with Focus Ireland at a former derelict site in Stoneybatter, Dublin.

The development cost just under €2.4 million and will house four children and seven adults.

Asked if he would hit his target for newly-built social housing units this year, after missing last year’s overall target, he said he expected to hit them.

“We built over 8,100 brand new social homes last year, and we brought a lot of homes back into stock. So I would expect us this year to attain our social housing target.”

“If you look at this, you’re standing here in what was a derelict site and these are brand new social homes.”

He added: “Undoubtedly there’s momentum there. Last year, we did 4,000 plus affordable homes.

“When I took over as minister there were none, there were no affordable homes, and this year we’re projecting we’ll do on our about 6,000 affordable homes. So by any fair assessment, that is real progress.

“Undoubtedly though, we have to do more and that’s why we’re in the process of actually revising our housing targets based on the ESRI data that we’ve received and the Housing Commission report.

“In the autumn of this year, we’ll be setting forward across all tenures – both private and public homes including obviously social, affordable and cost rental – what our revised targets will be.

“Because to continue the progress we’re making, we need private homes, we need social homes, we need affordable homes and we’ll be bringing forward that in the autumn of this year.”