Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Tuesday, 23 January 2024

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government

Update on Affordable Homes, Public Lands, Strategic Planning and Projects: Land Development Agency

Mr. John Coleman:

What we do is we put out an open call for expressions of interest. On Project Tosaigh phase 1, we are just finalising it with regard to the number of homes that we have yielded from that, which is around 2,500 that are either delivered, in construction, contracted or about to be contracted. The process for that was that we put out two calls for expressions of interest where the market comes to us with proposals for the LDA to buy at a certain amount of money on completion of the homes. That is unique because we are the only ones who put out these open calls, and that creates a competitive tension. There is an even greater competitive tension that comes in Project Tosaigh phase 2, which is formal procurement process where bids have to be submitted. Only the best ones will win. Not all of them will be selected. That is where we will give staged payments. That will drive value for money because there will not be financing costs lost out of the system.