Emer Currie (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister. For me, housing is the biggest issue that our country faces. Covid has been an inconvenient distraction from that but it has evolved the thinking on housing, community, quality of life, how and where we can work and, consequently, how and where we can live. By restricting their movements, we restricted spending so more potential buyers have been able to save up deposits. Both Covid and Brexit have affected building materials and costs and we face the knock-on effect of the closure of construction. There is additional pent-up frustration on top of the pent-up frustration among those who want to move and start the next stage of their adult lives, which means putting down roots and finding a home. We get to a point in our lives where, having found a good job or career and having found ourselves, we want to find a home. Unfortunately, too many lives have been put on hold.

Covid-19 has brought a new drive and localism, making the concept of the 15-minute city more achievable. We need to deliver on that vision through the development of homes, community infrastructure and amenities together. We have talked about this in Fingal County Council and here. It is about providing homes but it is as much about providing for the communities they are in.

The housing needs we are facing today are very different from those in 2011 and even from those before Covid. As my colleague said, the challenges keep coming. Therefore, we have to be flexible and change as they arise.

Certain themes remain, however, one being homelessness. I am glad to see the March report for homelessness numbers shows a decrease of 19%. Family homelessness is down 38% and emergency accommodation demand is down by 75% This is the lowest figure since June 2017 but it is not enough.

With regard to supply, we have increased the number of homes being built by 300%, from 5,000 in 2012 to more than 20,000 in 2020. We have made progress on social housing, with more than 10,000 homes having been supplied in 2019. We have taken 30,000 families off the social housing waiting list over the past four years. Again, however, Covid has taken its toll. I acknowledge the 157 voids that will be refurbished in Fingal this year under the new local authority voids scheme and also the new projects that are starting in Fingal.

On home ownership and affordability, the Government is absolutely committed to ensuring that affordable quality housing is available to everyone. The Affordable Housing Bill and the Land Development Agency Bill are comprehensive. The Affordable Housing Bill is the most comprehensive housing Bill in the history of the State. Almost €690 million will be put towards affordability measures, including a new affordable purchase shared-equity scheme, new cost-rental homes, Rebuilding Ireland home loans and an expanded help-to-buy scheme. The Land Development Agency is another measure. These developments are great. I include the increase to 20% under Part V, which has really worked for us, to include social and affordable housing, with a social mix of at least 10%. I echo what my colleagues have said about the importance of mixed development across the board. We can see the benefits in our communities. Also to be considered in this regard are the direct local authority build of affordable units, supported by a revamped serviced sites fund, and the affordable purchase scheme and the first-ever national cost-rental scheme, with more than 400 units built and occupied in the State, the cost being at least 25% less than the market value and 30% in some cases, with long-term tenure. The shared equity scheme is to increase first-time buyers' purchasing power. It is for people who cannot quite secure the full mortgage required. It could help 2,000 potential owners this year. It is a combination of all these measures that I hope will facilitate the change we need to see.

I want to raise the issue of building costs. They are another barrier. A builder told me recently that timber prices have gone up by 100% in the past six months and that steel has also gone up, by 50%. I am told that factories and timber mills were closed during the first lockdown and that there is a knock-on effect from that. It is also a matter of supply chains and Brexit. One family I spoke to bought a house to renovate last year when they could see they could have a home office and better life, but now the cost of renovating that home has gone up by 60%. With regard to factors such as the supply of skills and labourers, we have to be agile and on our toes.I know the Minister and his team and the committee are all those things.