Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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120. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government the number of houses and new housing starts in each of the counties immediately adjacent to Dublin city and county over the past 12 months; the expectation in this regard in the next six months; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25141/17]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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My Department publishes a range of datasets relating to housing market activity on the statistics area of its website.  Details of commencement notices received by each of the 31 local authorities are published as a monthly series which can be accessed through the following weblink: 

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In respect of completions data, since the 1970’s, my Department has published ESB data on residential homes connected to the ESB grid as a proxy for house completions, as it represents the best available indicator that a residential unit is becoming available for occupation.  This dataset includes recently completed once-off homes, multi-unit scheme developments and apartments as well as some re-connections to the grid, where properties that have been unoccupied for over two years are being brought back into use.  This dataset is also published as a monthly series, broken down by local authority, and can be accessed through the following weblink - 

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Returns up to and including February 2017 are currently available in respect of both datasets and data in respect of March 2017 will be published shortly.

Both datasets show that the pace of house-building activity is gathering momentum.  Driven by the strong supply side measures provided for under the Rebuilding Ireland Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness, including an expanding social housing programme and the Local Infrastructure Housing Activation Fund, housing supply should continue to strengthen in 2017 and beyond.  The ESRI's Spring Quarterly Economic Commentary forecasts that national housing output will grow to 18,500 units during 2017, which would be an increase of 23.89% on the 14,932 in 2016.