Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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27. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government his views on the recommendation in the IGEES current and capital expenditure on social housing delivery mechanisms report from July 2018 which states that there should be a greater emphasis on construction and acquisition rather than leasing, HAP and RAS for the delivery of social housing particularly in areas in which rents and property prices are high in the interests of value for money; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38898/18]

Eoghan Murphy (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael)
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The review of Current and Capital Expenditure on Social Housing Delivery Mechanisms, prepared by the Irish Government Economic & Evaluation Service (IGEES) and published earlier this summer, focussed on an examination of the housing supports provided through capital and current funding mechanisms, the trends and cost developments in housing expenditure and also considered broader issues relevant to overall housing policy development.

In examining the overall blend of housing delivery mechanisms, the review recognised that, in addition to cost factors, there are a range of other factors, which need to be considered in terms of housing delivery, including flexibility and speed of delivery to meet immediate housing need.

Addressing increased social housing need and delivering the greatest number of social housing supports at this time has required the development and implementation of a range of flexible and innovative mechanisms, which take account of available resources and market conditions. Harnessing private investment remains an important element in the overall delivery of social housing, including through supporting local authorities in meeting the needs of households on their waiting lists.

Notwithstanding the cost comparisons set out in the review, it remains the case that it would not be possible to deliver the same number of social housing homes in higher value rental areas exclusively through capital funded build and acquisition programmes. This will continue to be an important consideration in the context of the future availability of capital funding and the resourcing and capacity required to escalate local authority build and acquisition programmes to the level required to meet the current level of social housing need.

In relation to there being a greater emphasis on construction and acquisition, it should be noted that of the 50,000 social housing homes to be delivered under Rebuilding Ireland out to 2021, 33,500 of these will be built and 6,500 of these will be acquired. In addition to these 40,000 social housing homes that will be built or acquired, a further 10,000 homes will be leased under long term leasing arrangements and a further 87,000 households will have their housing need met through HAP and RAS.

Clearly, it is important at this time that a blended approach to the delivery of social housing homes is pursued in order to deliver and provide immediate housing supports to those households on local authority waiting lists across the country. Earlier this week, I published the 2018 Summary of Social Housing Assessments, which shows that there are 71,858 households on local authority social housing lists, a reduction of 13,941 or 16.2% on the last assessment in June 2017. The findings of the IGEES review highlight the need for a blended approach to delivery at this time in order to meet urgent housing need and are consistent with the planned evolution of the composition of the social housing programme over the years ahead under Rebuilding Ireland.