Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 1:

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

"acknowledges that: — Housing for All - a New Housing Plan for Ireland, sets out an ambitious multi-annual programme that seeks to deliver more than 300,000 new homes between 2022 and 2030;

— since Housing for All was published in September 2021, almost 120,000 homes have been added to the National Housing Stock, with delivery of 92,500 new homes in the three years from 2022 to 2024, representing a considerable 49 per cent increase on the quantum delivered in the previous three-year period;

— while the policy aim is to reach, if not exceed, the target in each successive year, the primary goal is to maintain an upward trajectory in supply and in line with or ahead of the overall target over the longer-term;

— delivery of affordable housing supports will significantly exceed 2023 outturn, while the supply of new build social homes continues to be at a level higher than it has been for many years;

— the development finance required to deliver 50,000 homes per year is in the region of €20 billion annually, and capital is needed from a range of sources to ensure the provision of private, social, and affordable homes; and

— the Housing for All Action Plan Update, published in November 2022, included a commitment to 'Review the operation of the private rental sector and report on policy considerations', and the housing Rent Pressure Zones (RPZs) have played a key role in protecting renters during a period of historic inflation, and that is why they are remaining in place during the review; further notes that: — the Irish Real Estate Fund (IREF) legislation was introduced in 2016, to address concerns regarding the use of collective investment vehicles by non-residents to invest in Irish property;

— on 22nd October, 2024, following Government approval, the then Minister for Finance, Jack Chambers TD, published the Funds Sector 2030: A Framework for Open, Resilient & Developing Markets', a wide-ranging review of the funds and asset management sector, and this review fulfilled a recommendation of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare 2022 report, which called for 'an examination of the regimes for Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) the IREFs and their role in the property sector, including how they support housing policy objectives';

— European Union funding streams are already accessed in the context of housing delivery in Ireland, and in this regard, European multilateral banks, such as the European Investment Bank Group, and the Council of Europe Development Bank have already played a role in delivering affordable and social homes in Ireland, and provided financing to bodies such as the National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA) and the Housing Finance Agency (HFA);

— under the term of the last Government, a number of measures were taken to restrict the bulk buying of homes by institutional investors, such as:

— a higher rate of Stamp Duty on the acquisition of houses situated in the State, where a person acquires at least 10 such houses during any 12-month period, was implemented in October 2024, and this rate was increased to 15 per cent from 2nd October, 2024;

— the Section 28 Guidelines for Planning Authorities ‘Regulation of Commercial Institutional Investment in Housing’, issued in May 2021, aimed to prevent multiple housing and duplex units being sold to a single buyer, providing an 'owner-occupier' guarantee, by ensuring that new 'own-door' houses and duplex units in lower-density housing developments can no longer be bulk-purchased by institutional investors in a manner that causes the displacement of individual purchasers or social and affordable housing, including cost-rental, and initial estimates for this period indicate that these Section 28 guidelines have continued to be impactful and have led to a further increase in home ownership through the use of planning conditions; and

— from May 2021 to November 2024, a combined total of 55,684 residential units were estimated to have received planning permission with conditions restricting the bulk buying or multiple sales to a single purchaser; and

— the Housing Agency is currently undertaking a review of RPZs and the expected timeline for a completed review is Q1 2025, and the review will consider whether RPZs should be continued as is, removed, modified, or replaced, and the extension to the Residential Tenancies Act in May last year, ensures predictability for tenants while this review takes place; recognises that: — the Housing Commission have advised that in order to create a housing system that functions across tenures and for all people, we need diverse and stable sources of financing;

— this capital is needed to ensure the provision of private, social, and affordable homes, homes of all tenures for families across the country at all price points;

— following on from a review of the rental market in July 2024, the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, has requested the Housing Agency to undertake a review which will assess the operation of RPZs and it is expected that this review will be completed by end of Q1 2025, and any potential future policy options that arise from this review will be fully considered by the Government and implemented as required; and

— the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, is continuing to deliver accelerated funding schemes across the affordable and social programmes which have the potential to unlock delivery of schemes in good locations, while enabling additional supply, with over 60 per cent of active approved projects under the Cost Rental Equity Loan being accelerated projects scheduled for completion between 2025 – 2028; and affirms Government efforts to: — diversify sources of investment, noting the level of investment required in the long term cannot be solely the responsibility of the State, it will also require a very significant level of private investment, including appropriate institutional capital investment which is essential for the delivery of critically needed private rented stock;

— engage with domestic lenders to ensure that the banking sector is appropriately using its lending capacity to support the development of new housing nationwide;

— develop new financing sources, especially for brownfield sites and small builders, with support from Home Building Finance Ireland, the HFA and domestic banks, as well as State support of equity investment;

— enhance protections for tenants, while appropriately vindicating landlords' constitutionally protected property rights, through measures introduced by successive recent Governments via the Residential Tenancies Acts;

— build on the significant number of social and affordable homes provided in 2024, expanding State investment, with almost €5 billion available for the delivery of social, affordable and cost-rental homes in 2025, supplemented by Land Development Agency investment and HFA lending, which will bring the overall capital provision to over €6 billion; and

— deliver on the far-ranging commitments in the Programme for Government and informed by the Housing Commission's proposals for the long-term reform of the housing system, accepting this is an appropriate response to the current housing challenges which Ireland is now facing.".

It is a matter of public record that I am a landlord. I just wanted to put that on the record of the Dáil. I assure all Deputies that the Government is absolutely committed to building more homes and that we are working on all fronts to achieve that goal and to ensure the great needs within our society and our economy are met. I thank the Social Democrats for raising this issue as it is important that we have a full, informed and clear discussion on what we must do in terms of what are shared ambitions, namely, improving conditions for renters, increasing affordability of homes and, most important, increasing overall supply.

There are many times in the various debates when the Social Democrats will be represented by one or two Members in the Dáil. That does not mean the party is uninterested. I am here representing the Government and I can assure Members that the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage is aware of the debate that is ongoing today. What we can all agree on is that a substantial increase in the supply of new homes is the route to solving Ireland’s housing crisis. Where we might differ is that this Government understands that the State cannot act alone in achieving this. That is why we are opposing this motion.

This year, we are channelling a record €6.1 billion in capital expenditure into housing, a fact the Social Democrats failed to acknowledge. For context, this is a six-fold increase over the past decade. Although this is a significant level of funding, the estimated development finance required to deliver 50,000 homes is a substantial €20 billion every year. The Housing Commission and the Department of Finance have advised that in order to deliver homes across varied tenures and for all people, we need diverse and stable sources of financing, including private capital.

The motion calls for the Government to retain rent pressure zones until there is an alternative system put in place that can protect renters. What this motion fails to acknowledge is that this system is already in place. The Housing for All action plan update published in November 2022 includes a commitment to "review the operation of the private rental sector and report on policy considerations". In May 2024, we extended rent predictability measures to the end of this year through the amendment of the Residential Tenancies Act. In doing so, we ensured that the current system of rent controls would give tenants absolute certainty while that review took place. That review is currently under way under the aegis of the Housing Agency and the expected timeline for completion is quarter one of 2025. Under Housing for All, the Government is committed to increasing the supply of rental properties, protecting renters and encouraging sustainable investment. The review will examine the operations of rent pressure zones since their introduction, assess their impact on key stakeholders and consider whether rent pressure zones should be continued in their current form, removed, modified or replaced.

Let me be clear. Protecting renters and attracting finance for home delivery are not mutually exclusive. The Department of Finance estimates that large landlords delivered some 17,000 apartments in Ireland between 2017 and 2023, accounting for 46% of the 37,500 apartments built during that period. The importance of this type of investment underscores the importance of policy certainty for investment in this sector going forward. In doing so, we are acting to benefit both today’s renters and those wishing to avail of accommodation in future. One thing is certain - increased supply benefits all renters and that is why it is our key ambition.

Responding to concerns in 2021 that new housing was being acquired by investment funds for subsequent rental, the Government took a number of actions to ensure that homes are available for purchases by families and individuals. This included the introduction of a higher rate of stamp duty on the acquisition of houses situated in the State where a person acquires at least ten such houses during any 12-month period, with some exemptions and refund provisions applying. This rate was increased to 15% from October 2024. The proposal to extend 100% tax to apartment purchases would effectively end the forward-funding channel for apartment supply - worth approximately €4 billion in investment between 2019 and 2022. This is an example of the ill-thought-out aspects of this motion from the Social Democrats. While its intentions are no doubt well placed, the reality of its policy is fewer homes and higher rents.

The kind of investment Ireland needs to attract now and going forward requires a stable tax and policy framework within which those who are building more homes, be they social, private or cost-rental, can operate. Our focus is squarely on creating an environment that encourages the stable delivery of new homes. In that respect, the Government is putting record capital behind our local authorities and approved housing bodies to deliver. The State is doing more than it has ever done before. An unprecedented level of public resources are being directed at housing. For 2024, the delivery of affordable housing will significantly exceed the 2023 outturn, while the supply of new-build social homes continues to be at levels not seen since the 1970s. As stated previously, this Government is channelling a record €6.1 billion in capital expenditure into housing this year alone. This is into social and affordable housing. That is the right thing to do and the Government will continue to invest significantly in the supply of social and affordable housing.

Furthermore, the Government is committed to continuing to diversify sources of investment in order to increase the supply of homes. This will include engagement with domestic lenders to ensure that the banking sector is using its lending capacity to support the development of new housing nationwide. It will include developing new financing sources, especially for brownfield sites and small builders, with support from Home Building Finance Ireland, the Housing Finance Agency and domestic banks as well as State support of equity investment. As part of this effort to build more homes, we will not just welcome but compete for private and patient capital from long-term investors such as pension funds. We will attract and welcome inward investment for housing, as we have successfully done with investment in other sectors of our economy. That is a normal facet of housing investment across Europe and beyond and it is what is needed to keep delivering more homes across Ireland.

Further to this, EU funding streams are already being accessed in the context of housing delivery. In this regard, European multilateral banks such as the European Investment Bank Group and the Council of Europe Development Bank have already provided financing to bodies such as the NTMA and the Housing Finance Agency. I can assure the House that there is strong engagement between the Government and these banks with regard to identifying investment opportunities in line with our priorities in the programme for Government, including housing.

Overall, we need a broader consideration of how we as a country are going to approach private sector investment in housing.

In that process, we will continually review and improve the regulatory environment to create a functioning housing system that delivers across all tenure types, engaging diverse and stable sources of finance. We will, however, do that without undermining the stability and certainty needed for investors.

From a taxation perspective, we have many schemes in place that are working and playing a positive role, including help to buy and the zoned land tax. These are positive interventions that I believe will contribute to more homes being built. Put simply, we need more housing of every type, including social, affordable and private, and this can only be achieved through the public and private sectors working together and to their respective strengths. For that reason, the Government is opposing this motion.

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