Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 1:

To delete all words after "That Dáil Éireann" and substitute the following: "notes that:

— the Government is taking the challenges in the rental sector and the increase in the number of people accessing homeless supports in recent months very seriously and, through the implementation of Housing for All: A New Housing Plan for Ireland, the Government is actively addressing this;

— a substantial increase in the supply of new homes is the key route to solving Ireland's housing crisis; and

— the Government's Housing for All: A New Housing Plan for Ireland outlines the Government's plans to increase affordability and housing supply by targeting the delivery of, on average, 33,000 new homes per annum out to 2030; and

acknowledges that:

— Housing for All: A New Housing Plan for Ireland is working and supply is increasing substantially, with almost 30,000 homes built in 2022, some 5,000 more than target, and almost 31,000 homes built in the year to end-March 2023, the first time since 2009 that rolling 12-month completions surpassed 30,000;

— there are very positive signs that the uplift in new home delivery will be sustained in 2023 and coming years, with a record 6,700 homes completed in Q1 2023, a record 13,000 homes commencing construction between January and May this year, and Q1 2023 planning permissions up 38 per cent year-on-year and the highest since Q4 2021;

— the continued commitment to unparalleled levels of funding, with a record €4.5 billion in State housing investment in 2023, will ensure that the substantial uplift in supply in 2022 can be maintained and exceeded, with 9,100 direct build social homes and 5,500 affordable homes to be delivered;

— social and affordable housing supply is increasing, with 10,263 social homes delivered in 2022, representing an 11.9 per cent increase on 2021 figures when 9,169 social homes were provided; and this represents the highest annual output of social homes in decades and the highest level of delivery of new-build housing since 1975;

— from a standing start 1,757 affordable homes were delivered in 2022, the first full year of affordable housing delivery in a generation, and affordable housing supply at scale will be achieved through a mix of new or extended initiatives, including the First Home scheme, local authority-provided affordable purchase schemes, the Help to Buy initiative and the expanded Local Authority Home Loan, and by delivery partners from local authorities, Affordable Housing Bodies and the Land Development Agency, taken together, the suite of affordable measures will make home ownership achievable for tens of thousands of individuals and families;

— a strong pipeline of social and affordable housing is now in place, with over 19,000 new-build social homes in the pipeline and over 2,500 more local authority affordable homes already approved for funding;

— the expanded use of the Tenant In-Situ Scheme and the establishment of the Cost Rental Tenant-in-Situ Scheme, developed on an administrative basis to address the immediate circumstances of the ending of the 'winter emergency period' on 31st March, 2023, will help prevent homelessness;

— the recent introduction of a time-limited temporary waiver of development contributions and Uisce Éireann water and wastewater connection charges in respect of residential development, which will have to be completed by the end of 2025, will help to address construction cost viability issues and incentivise the activation of a pipeline of new commencements to further assist in meeting our ambitious housing delivery targets;

— the numerous initiatives to address vacancy, including changes to the Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant and the new €150 million fund to specifically address long-term vacancy and dereliction now available under the Urban Regeneration Development Fund, will revitalise towns and cities while also providing additional homes;

— the Government is tackling supply and affordability issues in the rental market by delivering Cost Rental housing at scale with hundreds now tenanted, and 1,345 local authority cost rental units, across seven projects, have been approved for funding of almost €196 million;

— regulatory controls on short-term-lets will be strengthened, with a ban on the advertising of non-principal private residences in Rent Pressure Zones (RPZs) for short-term letting purposes, where the necessary planning permission is not in place;

— tenancy protections have been enhanced, with rent increase caps in RPZs, restricted deposit amounts, extended notice periods, and tenancies of unlimited duration introduced by this Government; and crucially the period from the date of receipt of a 'no fault' Notice of Termination for a tenant to submit a dispute to the Residential Tenancies Board for resolution has also been increased from 28 days to 90 days;

— the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage has commenced a comprehensive review of the private rental sector to take account of the significant regulatory changes over the past several years; and this review will be essential in properly planning future policy for the residential rented sector, including implementing measures to support both landlords and tenants; and

— Housing for All (September 2021) and Housing for All Action Plan Update (November 2022) includes a comprehensive suite of measures and actions to fundamentally reform the housing system in Ireland, while these include, securing pathways out of homelessness for individuals, families and children, accelerating delivery through the adoption of Modern Methods of Construction, overhauling planning legislation, and addressing vacancy by bringing empty housing stock and other premises into the residential stock, underpinned by a new Vacant Homes Action Plan 2023-2026.".

I welcome the opportunity to set out the Government action to address the challenges in the rental sector, help those who may be experiencing homelessness and accelerate the supply of social, affordable, cost-rental and private housing. I am glad we have had input from Sinn Féin this evening. I took Priority Questions on Thursday last. Deputy Gould was the only one who put a housing question to me that morning. A person who had been listening to colleagues on the other side of the House for the past half hour or so would be forgiven for thinking no progress is being made on housing.

I will take this opportunity to inform the House on the key areas of progress under the Government's Housing for All plan, which is backed by more than €4 billion per annum in State investment.

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