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

I will respond first to some points raised by Members. Deputy Andrews inquired about the Glass Bottle site. The figures are 25% social and affordable, 10% Part V and 15% additional affordable and social. I will have to come back to him on the oversight committee.

Deputy Cian O'Callaghan raised points about the rough sleeper count. Again, I will have to revert on those. Deputy Paul Murphy made some points in which he criticised the Labour Party. The Labour Party, like the Green Party, is always willing to step into government and do what is needed. If an opportunity for a left-led government emerges will People Before Profit step up when it is needed? I again say in response to the criticism that has been made of the Labour Party, that it has always stepped up and been willing to participate in government. There are enough hurlers on the ditch around here.

Deputy Canney raised the management of capacity in regard to local authorities and the maintenance of housing stock. That is hugely significant and important. We are addressing issues relating to An Bord Pleanála.

Deputies Pringle and Wynne raised points about Traveller accommodation. I agree wholeheartedly that local authorities must provide it and that they should meet their requirements and targets for Traveller-specific accommodation.

We know that the housing crisis is having a real impact on people's lives and the nation as a whole. We understand the urgency and the need to ensure that people have a safe, secure and affordable home. No one underestimates the scale of the challenge and the motion before the House today highlights some of those challenges.

We are not opposing the motion. We believe that in respect of the issues raised in the motion, work is already under way. The Minister of State, Deputy O'Donovan, has already set out some of the ongoing measures in his opening statement but I acknowledge some more of the significant progress this Government has made since the publication of Housing for All in September 2021.

Supply, which is critical to addressing the challenges facing the housing system, has increased significantly. Last year we delivered 32,695 new homes, the highest number in this country in well over a decade. That momentum is continuing. Construction commenced on nearly 33,000 homes in 2023, and in January of this year alone, close to 3,400 homes commenced. This increase of 59% on January 2023 shows that we are continuing in the right direction. It is the highest number of units commenced in the month of January since records began in 2015.

Annual house price inflation, as measured by the CSO residential property price index, also moderated significantly in 2023, falling from 15.1% in March 2022 to 4.4% in December 2023, with the price of new houses also moderating. I know that affordability is a challenge for many, and those looking to buy or rent in cities and towns can face difficulties. However, it is evident that Housing for All is having a real impact for those who wish to buy a home. Nearly 26,000 first-time buyers drew down mortgages in 2023, the highest level since 2007. Many of these were supported by the first home and help-to-buy schemes.

The responsibility for housing policies lies at the national rather than EU level. However, where opportunities arise to co-operate and foster best policy across member states these are taken up. The Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, was at the European conference of housing ministers in Liège this week where solutions to improve access to affordable, decent housing for all within the EU were being progressed.

Increasing the supply of affordable housing is a central element of Housing for All, with an objective to deliver 36,000 new affordable and 18,000 cost-rental homes in the period 2022-2030. A very ambitious programme of affordable housing is now in place and has already seen significant delivery. More than 2,100 affordable housing supports were delivered by the end of the third quarter of 2023 via approved housing bodies, local authorities, the LDA and through the first home scheme. This momentum will continue as the pipeline of affordable housing delivery is developed and expanded.

The year 2022 saw the highest annual output of social homes in decades and the highest level of new-build social homes in more than half a century. More than 10,200 social homes were delivered by local authorities and AHBs through build, acquisition or leasing. The significant increase in new-build social homes is a testament to how Housing for All is having a positive effect on thousands of the most vulnerable in this country. Social housing delivery figures for 2023 are being confirmed and they will be published in the coming weeks. I am confident that they will exceed last year's figures.

The increase in the supply of housing is critical to tackling homelessness. This Government is prioritising measures which focus on accelerating social and affordable housing supply through a combination of new build, targeted acquisitions and leasing. Preliminary data for 2023 shows that more than 1,000 acquisitions were completed in the first nine months of 2023, with more than 500 properties acquired under the tenant in situ scheme. For 2024, the Government has again approved an increase in social housing acquisitions to 1,500 and will keep these targets under review.

Further measures introduced to increase and accelerate the supply of social homes include an additional 1,000 homes through targeted leasing initiatives in 2024; and the amendment of the capital advance leasing facility, CALF, used by AHBs to assist them in their efforts to deliver social homes.

The Government also introduced the cost-rental tenant in situ scheme, CRTiS, in April last year for tenants in private rental homes who are not eligible for social housing supports but who are at risk of homelessness. It continues to be available for eligible tenants who are at risk of homelessness if their landlord intends to sell the property. I encourage anyone who finds themselves in that situation to contact their local authority and make an appointment to see their local housing officer.

The fourth quarter homeless progress report for 2023 thankfully shows strong progress in terms of preventions from homelessness, with more than twice the number of individuals being prevented from entering homelessness compared to the same period in 2022. This shows that measures such as the tenant in situ scheme are beginning to have a positive effect. A total of 6,848 adult preventions and exits were achieved over the course of 2023. This represents a 25% increase on the 5,478 adult preventions and exits achieved in 2022. It is still an issue of great concern for the Government. That is why there is such a great focus on preventions and exits as well as significant investment and effort in accelerating and increasing supply.

The Labour Party's motion calls for increased funding for local authorities to tackle vacancy and dereliction through the compulsory purchase of empty buildings. Tackling vacancy is already a key priority for this Government. Many areas face the blight of vacant properties which, if brought back into use, could support the regeneration and revitalisation of those communities. Heritage-led regeneration of villages, towns and cities will also enhance the viability of local services, shops and pubs.

Continued implementation of Housing for All objectives and the actions to address vacancy and dereliction represent the most appropriate response to dealing with those issues and ensuring that towns, cities and villages once again become vibrant places where people want to live, work and socialise. Significant progress is being made. The vacant homes action plan, launched in January 2023, outlines the progress, along with the actions being pursued to return vacant properties back into use as homes.

As part of the plan, a new compulsory purchase order, CPO, activation programme was launched in April 2023, which provides for a proactive and systematic approach by local authorities to identifying vacant and derelict properties and engaging with owners to bring those properties back into use. This includes the active use of existing compulsory purchase powers by local authorities, where needed. A fund of €150 million is being made available to support the programme under the urban regeneration and development fund for local authorities to acquire long-term vacant or derelict properties for reuse.

The Croí Cónaithe towns fund is successfully supporting the refurbishment of vacant and derelict properties through the vacant property refurbishment grant and the provision of serviced sites for people to build their own homes through the ready to build scheme. Feedback on the grant has been very positive. By the end of December 2023, and I actually have figures as recent as 5 March, in excess of 6,034 applications had been received, more than 3,000 grants had been approved, and payments, that is as of yesterday, are being made as work is completed. In fact, due to the success of the grant, the target for homes to be delivered under the fund has been increased from 2,000 to 4,000 by 2025.

While varying levels of vacancy are indicated in the different data sources, the overall trend is consistently downwards and vacancy levels are reducing. The most efficient home to deliver is one which already exists, and, working together, I firmly believe there are thousands of vacant and derelict houses nationwide that will be transformed into homes, with all the benefits that will bring to our communities and the sustainable reuse of these wonderful properties.

We have achieved much since Housing for All was published, but we know there is still a long road ahead. We will continue doing everything in our power to increase affordability, improve the rental market, eradicate homelessness, address vacancy and fix the housing system for generations to come.

I thank the Labour Party for bringing the motion forward today. It is a progressive motion and we look forward to working with all parties in this House.

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