Malcolm Noonan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I propose to take Questions Nos. 68, 92, 250, 256 and 261 together.

Accelerating the delivery of housing is a key priority for Government. Housing for All is the Government’s plan to increase and fast-track the supply of housing, and it is delivering. This continues to break records year on year for the delivery of housing. Almost 33,000, that is, 32,695 new homes were completed last year, which is the highest in 15 years. The residential vacancy rate has dipped below 4% and dereliction is down 7.9% according to GeoDirectory.

Indicators for the future are also very positive, with 32,801 homes commencing construction in 2023 and planning permission granted for 37,600 homes in the year to end September 2023. In fact, the recent Euroconstruct report, as highlighted by my colleague, the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, demonstrated that Ireland is an outlier in Europe. While total construction activity across 19 European countries is expected to fall in 2024, Ireland’s construction activity is due to expand this year. Residential property prices have also moderated significantly with an increase of 2.9% in the year to November 2023, down from a high of 15% in March 2022. That is down to supply and delivery of housing.

Housing for All has an inbuilt flexibility to review measures to reflect the changing and complex needs of the housing system. The latest updated action plan, published in November, continues to focus on activating and delivering housing at pace and enhancing affordability, while fundamentally reforming our housing system to ensure it is sustainable into future.

A comprehensive suite of measures was introduced to further enhance delivery, including: reducing the cost of construction by removing development levies for a limited time, saving up to the value of €12,650 per unit, on average, and encouraging accelerated delivery; increasing the number of vacant and derelict properties being renovated by enhancing the grants available and making it easier to apply; facilitating the commencement of works to thousands of affordable apartments to rent by introducing of the sustainable tenancy affordable rent, STAR, scheme, and revising the terms of the cost rental equity loan, CREL; encouraging innovation in construction to improve the pace and efficiency of house building by taking measures to ensure modern methods of construction are used in more developments effectively, which is in one of Deputy Durkan's questions, to deliver housing more effectively; funding the Land Development Agency, LDA, to assemble strategic land banks for housing on a mix of public and private lands to provide essential long-term stability to the housing market; and identifying State-owned lands that may be available and suitable for housing.

Reflecting the importance of this issue, a record €5.1 billion capital investment in housing was announced in budget 2024. The capital funding being provided will ensure continued delivery of new affordable homes for purchase and rent. All the trends are certainly going in the right direction. As the Minister said, there is no doubt that this is a flexible plan that will adapt and change, as required.

As the previous contributor mentioned, our population is increasing. We are in almost full employment. There is no doubt that this creates challenges, but Government is up to these challenges and, certainly, ensuring we have a vibrant and strong construction sector and a planning and fevelopment Bill that is fit for purpose to help deliver housing in a sustainable way in order that people can participate in that system, while using modern methods of construction to help accelerate the delivery of housing in all tenure types right across the State.

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