Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Gabhaim buíochas leis na Teachtaí ar fad as páirt a ghlacadh sa díospóireacht thábhachtach seo inniu. Níl mé ag iarraidh agus níl aon suim agam maslaí a thrádáil le haon duine sa Fhreasúra. I do not want to trade insults with anybody. I disagree with a lot of the policies, but I will say that in the case of the proposers, that is, Deputy Ó Broin and Sinn Féin, they have a policy as opposed to slogans. They are actually willing to serve in government unlike some who spoke in the debate earlier this evening when I was in the Chamber who just throw things across the floor and never actually have the courage to come to this side of the House.

I want to echo the comments made by the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien. I reassert the Government’s commitment to tackling the challenges in the housing sector, particularly those related to the provision of affordable housing. Those challenges are real. We understand the real impact they are having on people’s lives and on the nation collectively. We understand, and we are acting on the urgency. We want people to have safe, secure and affordable homes. Nobody on this side of the House underestimates the scale of the challenge. The Minister is working day in and day out to address these challenges and implement policies that are making a positive difference.

The motion this evening does not fairly represent the efforts and progress that has been made. Sinn Féin makes the point in the motion that we need to increase affordable housing delivery. This is happening. The Government has delivered more than 8,500 affordable options since the launch of Housing for All. Delivery doubled in the first half of this year compared to the same period in 2023. We have provided the first affordable homes in a generation with nearly 1,000 affordable purchase homes having been delivered across 15 local authorities. We want to deliver much more. We will do this by continuing close working partnerships with delivery partners to redouble our efforts and deliver additional affordable housing via the fully funded and legislatively underpinned Housing for All plan.

Affordable housing is being delivered across the country, as I said, with momentum continuing. In the first half of 2024, 2,669 affordable housing supports were delivered, more than doubling the 1,294 affordable housing options delivered in the first six months of 2023. We will continue to ensure that affordable housing scales up delivery. We have seen this happening with the Land Development Agency, in partnership with Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council, having recently launched Shanganagh Castle Estate in South Dublin, which will deliver almost 600 homes in the largest public housing development in decades, including the first 246 affordable homes.

Support is available to all local authorities through the affordable housing fund to help deliver affordable purchase and cost-rental homes where an affordable housing need is evident. Approvals for funding are now in place to support delivery of more than 4,300 affordable homes by 21 local authorities, including in my own constituency of Mayo where approval has been given to deliver 13 in Westport. The housing delivery team in the Department are liaising on further schemes. That is absolutely not enough, and I accept that. We will continue to work with and push Mayo County Council to deliver more. However, there are options available to do that through the use of the affordable housing fund.

Through the implementation and funding of Housing for All and giving it a legislative basis, we have securely laid the foundation and built a housing pipeline, and we are investing in a skills pipeline, to allow us to continue to ramp up delivery in the coming months and years. Housing for All includes a comprehensive suite of measures to promote home ownership and support affordability-constrained individuals and families to purchase their own home. As of the end of quarter 2 of 2024, nearly 1,000 local authority affordable purchase homes have been delivered across 15 local authority areas.

These homes are typically new starter homes in the lower half of the market price spectrum for the area. The average upfront affordable purchase price paid by buyers was €267,000 across the range of two-, three- and four-bedroom homes available in a range of locations.

For example, Limerick City and County Council delivered 21 three-bedroom affordable homes to affordable purchasers at Newcastle West in 2023. It is not only happening in Dublin. The open market value of the homes on offer ranged from €300,000 to €310,000, reflecting variations in floor size. The application of a subvention from the affordable homes fund enabled the homes to be advertised to affordable purchasers at upfront prices from €250,000 and €260,000. By way of comparison, CSO data shows that the rolling 12-month median price for new homes purchased by first-time buyer owner-occupiers in County Limerick in late 2023 was €385,000. This is but one example to illustrate how individuals or families on modest incomes who were priced out of the housing market are being facilitated in acquiring their own home.

In addition, a range of other measures, such as the first home scheme, the help-to-buy initiative, the local authority home loan and the vacant property refurbishment grant, are available to help make home ownership more affordable. I will ask the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, to revert to Deputy Wynne in relation to the issue she raised.

The first home scheme, in particular, has proven to be a key support for first-time buyers. This scheme continues to support first-time buyers and other eligible home buyers in purchasing new homes and apartments in the private market. Since its launch in July 2021, the scheme has issued over 5,500 approvals, with 74% of approvals issued in Dublin, Cork, Kildare, Meath and Wicklow, areas with significant levels of affordability constraint. We also committed an additional €100 million to this scheme in September, demonstrating our commitment to ensuring affordable home ownership for citizens.

Under the help-to-buy scheme, 51,474 claims have been made, of which 50,398 have been approved. This demonstrates that it is a well understood and well functioning scheme which is crucial to first-time buyers. We have extended it until the end of 2029.

This Government is delivering high levels of new homes, including the ramping up of affordable delivery. With record levels of commencements, the progress made since the publication of Housing for All is evident. The most important action is to build new homes, and we have exceeded the Housing for All overall targets to date. Almost 33,000 new homes were built in 2023, with more than 116,000 built between 2020 and the end of quarter 2 of 2024. We are seeing further growth again this year as the plan and its many initiatives have gained a firm footing. Underpinned by rebounding planning permissions in 2023 and a surge in commencements this year, some 58,000 homes have started on site in the year to the end of August.

We are also seeing continued strong growth in mortgage drawdowns by first-time buyers, with some 25,500 mortgages drawn down in the rolling 12 months to the end of quarter 2 2024.

The Government is providing over €5.1 billion of capital investment in 2024 to accelerate the delivery of new homes and increase the supply necessary to reduce homelessness and moderate house and rental prices. This level of support will be increased in 2025 to a record €6 billion to ensure the continued positive momentum of Housing for All.

I reiterate that Housing for All is delivering. In its amendment to the motion, the Government reflects this delivery. It makes clear its commitment to a core principle that everybody should have access to good quality housing to purchase or rent. We will continue to do everything to increase housing supply, address affordability challenges and ensure homes are delivered for our children, grandchildren and generations to come.

See this speech in context