Kevin Humphreys (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State. I agree with him on a few issues. He is quite correct that there is no silver bullet or quick fix. Our response must be planned and there needs to be attention to detail. I ask him to have a close look at one site in Sandymount and Ringsend. The site in question comprises 85 acres and could accommodate 3,500 units for 8,000 residents. However, there have been numerous delays to the proposed project. It is worth going through the dates relating to this matter because, as Senator Coffey stated, everybody wants houses but not in their back gardens. When the original proposal relating to the site was put forward, the residents of Ringsend and Sandymount stated that there had to be a proper mix on the site of social and affordable housing and affordable rental. They worked with the previous Minister on that. Residents met the latter on a number of occasions, including at the site, from March 2017. They tried to work in partnership in order that the project might proceed. They worked with councillors in the area, with me and with Deputies and developed a proposal for social and affordable housing on the site.

In May 2017, we had gone through the public consultation process and council meetings were taking place. The proposal was to increase the 10%, which was 350 units, up to 900 units. A commercial agreement was entered into at a particular council meeting at which I was in attendance. Phone calls were exchanged between officials in the Department and their counterparts in Dublin City Council. A deal was brokered with the councillors regarding the strategic development zone, SDZ, for Poolbeg West. Under the terms of the deal, there would, as part of a commercial agreement, be 350 social housing units and 550 social and affordable units. That was signed off on. The previous Minister spoke in the Dáil about how well this process worked and cited it as an example of how we could increase delivery outside Part V and use it as a template to deliver additional social and affordable housing units not only in this city but across the country. Attention to detail then went out the window. There was no engagement with the receiver regarding the 550 units and little or no contact. The receiver then stated publicly that he had no option but to appeal the SDZ because no agreement was reached in respect of the 550 additional units. All I can say is "Shame". It is shameful that the eye was taken off the ball. Delivery must be the gospel in the context of this matter. We all need to work together to ensure that we deliver what has been promised. What was promised consisted of 3,500 units, of which 350 would be social housing units and 550 social and affordable housing units. Unfortunately, however, the Department and Dublin City Council took their eye off the ball and the matter ended up before An Bord Pleanála. Lo and behold, on the day before An Bord Pleanála was due to sit, negotiations suddenly resumed. During that process, we were guaranteed that there would be attention to detail, that negotiations would take place and that a commercial agreement for the additional 550 units would be signed. This has not happened. There has been no word regarding the 550 units. All I can say to the Minister of State is "Shame".

In August of this year, An Bord Pleanála announced that it could not make a decision because of a backlog and lack of resources. That is attention to detail - ensuring that An Bord Pleanála has the proper resources and that there is no backlog. Only 35% of decisions determined by An Bord Pleanála are now done in the timeframe set out under legislation. All I can say about this is "Shame". At the beginning of September, we discovered that the detail relating to the application involving the SDZ was not properly covered by the city council. An Bord Pleanála said that insufficient detail was forthcoming with regard to design, parking, green spaces and community facilities. Was this because of lack of resources in Dublin City Council or the lack of attention to detail? All I can say to the Minister of State is "Shame". We must wait for the city council to send the application back to An Bord Pleanála by January 2019. This may mean that the oral hearing must be reopened resulting in further delay on top of more delay. All I can say in that regard is "Shame".

I want to see housing being delivered but that is just not happening. The broad brush strokes can be done but when we look at such an important site 25 minutes from O'Connell Street with the possibility of building 3,500 units, which would be enough accommodation for 8,000 residents, we can see that the eye was taken off the ball with a lack of attention to detail and delay after delay. I will give credit where credit is due. The previous Minister engaged fully at the early stages but once it passed the city council in May 2017, attention to detail disappeared, including with regard to the application to An Bord Pleanála, and there were no negotiations regarding social and affordable housing or with the receiver in any true sense. This is not a case where the community said "Not in my back garden".The community was quite prepared to have that quantity of development, as long as it was a fair deal for the city, was sustainable and provided housing for the local community, which would have meant local children had the opportunity to live in affordable accommodation. However, attention to detail went out the window and that was a shame. We have seen such a lack of detail over and over again on numerous sites and the Minister of State has to take responsibility, as does the Minister, Deputy Eoghan Murphy, Owen Keegan and officials in the Department. They were all on the phone in May 2017 to make sure a deal was brokered but then we needed the attention to detail.

The Minister of State has failed this city and this country in the lack of attention to detail that was shown. We will not now see the 3,500 units delivered on time, nor sustainable development nor homes for local people. The Minister can give the big speeches and talk about big sums of money but he failed to pay attention to the details that would have ensured the delivery of 3,500 units and I say "Shame".