Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

This has been a very good debate with extremely valuable contributions. I almost do not know where to start in view of the range of issues that were raised. I very much agree with the amendment. I support the thrust of it. The amendment relates to housing authorities proactively planning for the delivery of affordable dwellings for purchase and for cost-rental. Local authorities are required to prepare housing strategies as part of the development plan process. In doing so, they are required to identify existing need and the likely future need for social and affordable housing for purchase. National planning policy objective 37 of the national planning framework provides for a housing need demand assessment to be undertaken in each of the 31 local authority areas in order to ensure long-term strategic housing needs are met.

The Minister recently published a housing need demand assessment framework, guidance and tool. The purpose of conducting the housing need demand assessment is to: assist local authorities to develop long-term strategic views of housing needs across all tenures; provide a robust evidence base to support decisions about new housing supply, wider investment and housing-related services; inform policies about the proportion of social housing and affordable housing required; provide evidence; and inform policies relating to the provision of specialist housing and housing-related services. Local authorities will use their housing need demand assessments to inform policymaking through their housing strategies and plans which form part of the overall development plan. While it is expected that local authorities will conduct a housing need demand assessment during the development plan process, the tool for this assessment, which estimates housing need demands across tenure types, can assist them at any time in the process of their own policy formation.

Housing authorities are also requested to identify a need for affordable housing in their areas as a response to calls for proposals under the serviced sites fund. They will work with my Department on the delivery of the projects once they get approval. In view of all the foregoing, it may be premature to impose a statutory requirement for the preparation of affordable housing plans at this juncture.I do not propose to accept the amendment. However, I will keep it under review as matters develop. I have spoken to the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, on it. He will publish the housing for all plan next month, which he advises will also have targets for each delivery mechanism attached to it. He has advised me he will review the amendment at that juncture. It is a very important amendment and I accept the thrust of it.

I will outline some points. I hear a lot of frustration about the national planning framework. Sometimes this can be a little misguided. Senators should think in terms of what direction we are taking as a country. We have the capacity to increase the population by 1 million, of which 50% will be outside the Eastern and Midland Regional Assembly area. If we go back a decade, enough land was zoned in the various local authority areas in the country to cater for population growth of 10 million citizens. What does this tell us as a Parliament? Does it tell us whether zoning is in the most appropriate place? The point made by Senator Casey on zoning being underlined by infrastructure really hit home and is very important. We need land to be zoned where it can be delivered and where the infrastructure is. In one county, a town was zoned for an increase in population of 2,500 over a six-year period. People were not happy with this and wanted more. The population of the town increased by 50 over the six-year period.

We need perspective in the debate and to be careful when we attack the national planning framework. There is huge scope within it. Local authorities have scope. Westmeath County Council has passed its county development plan. I remember looking at the regulator's opening observations and a large number of issues were raised. The local authority responded to each of those issues and where it had increased zoning in particular towns, it set out the reasons it had done so. The Office of the Planning Regulator accepted this. There is no harm in challenging our local authorities to make sure housing can be delivered in these areas.

Wicklow currently has a capacity increase of 30% and nine local authorities would have to increase their housing numbers by more than 100% over the coming six years. Ten local authorities would have to increase their housing numbers by more than 250%. When we say we do not have enough capacity or opportunities to zone land we must bear these figures in mind. It is important to prioritise where the zoning is and where the delivery is. This is key to the debate.

To be fair, when we read the national planning framework there are always frustrations but it is a reasonable document in how it tries to create the first link between a national development plan together with a planning proposal document, setting out the broad thrust of where our infrastructure should be and where our housing should be delivered to create sustainable communities, as has been spoken about so much today. Senator Crowe spoke about Galway. The Minister is bringing in the chief executives in the coming week and I will raise Senator Crowe's points on these issues with him.

All of the points raised by the Senators are very valid. I have accepted what amendments I could at this juncture, and with regard to those amendments I could not accept, we will have a look at them and we have given good reasons for doing so.