I welcome the opportunity to provide Teachtaí with an update on housing and the Government’s progress since the publication of Housing for All back in September 2021, just over two and a half years ago. While challenges undoubtedly remain and we continue to operate in an ever-changing environment, real progress has been made. It is important to take time to reflect on this and today provides me with the perfect opportunity. It is also timely to discuss the conclusions and recommendations of the Housing Commission.
Under our programme for Government and Housing for All, we established the Housing Commission in 2021 to take a long-term strategic view of housing over an extended time horizon post 2030. We tasked the commission with examining issues such as tenure, standards, sustainability and quality-of-life issues in the provision of housing. I received the Housing Commission report, which was three years in the making, just 13 days ago. It was discussed at Cabinet this morning and I will publish it very shortly. I actually intend to publish it this week. I thank the commission members for their work, their efforts and their commitment to this process. I have engaged with the commission since I set it up in 2021.
Its work is integral to our Housing for All plan and it is important that, as part of the ongoing process, we continue to review new inputs into the plan. Like any plan worth its salt, it has in-built reviews, and the Housing Commission report is part of that.
The majority of its recommendations are already in hand and build on the detailed plans we already have in place. Other aspects will require more detailed assessment. I will further analyse and assess the 300-plus page report, which covers almost three years of work by the commission, and ensure it is integrated, where appropriate, into our housing targets and action review over the summer.
Arís, tá sé tábhachtach a rá, go bhfuil an Rialtas ag athbhreithniú na spriocanna tithíochta. Agus an obair seo ar siúl, tá sé tábhachtach a chur in iúl gur sáraíodh na spriocanna foriomlána faoi Thithíocht do Chách sa dá bhliain ó seoladh é.
It is important to set the context of what we have achieved in Housing for All so far. Housing for All is the most ambitious housing plan in the history of the State. Housing has the potential to impact on every aspect of Irish society and that is why it is the highest priority of this Government. We continue to take a whole-of-government approach in developing and implementing our plan. We consider every element of the housing system, use every lever, continuously review and take an agile approach in order that we can accelerate and increase the supply and affordability of homes for our citizens. The plan sets out a series of bold actions to meet the housing challenges we face. It is backed up by record capital investment, with over €5 billion this year alone. The plan puts forward a vision that aims to ensure that people have access to sustainable, good-quality affordable housing to buy or rent while meeting the needs of the most vulnerable in our society through measures addressing homelessness.
The increasing number of new homes being built over the last couple of year show that Housing for All is working. Over 32,600 new homes were completed in 2023, 10% higher than in the previous year and the highest figure for 15 years. It exceeded the Housing for All target of 29,000 by almost 13%. We have seen an additional 5,841 homes already completed in the first quarter of this year. Twelve-month completions are up on last year, from 30,744 in quarter 1 of 2023 to 31,820 in quarter 1 of 2024. It is the third quarter in a row that the rolling 12-month completions have surpassed 31,000. The progress being made is reflected in the independent research being conducted. The BNP Paribas PMI construction report for April shows residential construction activity expanding for two successive months. It notes that residential construction, new orders, employment and purchasing all increased in April 2024. It is also worth noting that according to EUROCONSTRUCT, an independent construction market forecasting network active in 19 European countries, construction output in Ireland is forecast to grow by 4.4%, whereas it is expected to fall by 2.1% in other EU countries.
These trends are reflected in what we are seeing on the ground. There has been a strong level of commencement activity between January and April this year on the back of the Government’s waiver of development levies and Uisce Éireann connection fees. Construction has commenced on 53,000 homes this year to the end of April. That is approximately 350 units starting on site every working day so far this year. We expect to see many of these developments progress substantially over the next six to nine months. We may see a dip in future commencements in the short term as the focus shifts to progressing those newly started developments towards completion. Longer-term delivery continues to trend positively. Planning permissions figures were strong last year. There were 41,225 permissions granted for new homes, an increase of 21% on 2022. The uplift in planning permissions, along with the considerable increase in commencements in the past 12 months, indicates a strong pipeline of new homes into 2025 and 2026.
Increased delivery of social housing is an absolute key to Housing for All objectives and it is supported through a range of funding streams. New build social home output is increasing year on year. Preliminary data is suggesting a similar increase in 2024. Almost 12,000 new social homes were delivered last year through a mix of new builds, acquisitions and leasing programmes. This was an increase of 16% on the previous year. It was the highest annual output of social homes in decades and the highest level of delivery of new-build social homes since 1975. All of these indicators show that the uplift in delivery seen in recent years will be sustained this year and built upon in subsequent years.
While homes are being built at record rates, we know that more is needed. It will take time for the measures set out in Housing for All to fully take effect but we are already seeing significant progress. There is no overnight fix to the issues we face, but the Housing for All plan is addressing the root cause of the problems. The Government is also acting decisively to expand the options for those currently facing affordability constraints in buying or renting a home, with an unprecedented level of financial commitment and delivery ambition. The affordable measures introduced by the Government will make, and are making, homeownership achievable for tens of thousands of individuals and families. They will also reduce the rental pressures on thousands of hard-pressed middle-income earners. Short-term measures will support people immediately, allowing for longer-term measures to take hold. We have already seen a very substantial scale-up in this space. Over 4,000 housing supports were delivered last year via approved housing bodies, local authorities and the Land Development Agency, through the first home scheme, the cost rental tenant in situ scheme and the vacant property refurbishment grant. These figures represent an increase of 128% on 2022 activity, which highlights the significant progress achieved to date on affordable housing. I am projecting that we will exceed 6,000 affordable homes this year.
First-time buyer activity continues to go from strength to strength. More than 30,000 first-time buyers were approved for a mortgage in the 12 months to the end of March 2024, up 7.5% on the previous year. Home purchases by first-time buyers are up 5% year on year in the 12 months to the end of February, accounting for more than one third of total purchases by households. Mortgage drawdowns by first-time buyers also reached a new peak of almost 26,000 last year, the highest level since 2007.
Supports such as the help to buy scheme, the local authority home loan, the ready to build scheme and the first home shared equity scheme have been critical to ensuring access to affordable housing and to assist those aspiring to purchase their own homes. The level of demand under the first home scheme, with nearly 4,500 approvals to date, prompted the Government to invest a further €40 million, bringing the total investment to €240 million over the lifetime of the scheme. That was matched by the banks to give a total of €480 million invested through this scheme. In the first quarter of this year, there were 809 approvals and 262 homes purchased under the first home scheme, and approvals are up 38% compared with quarter 1 of 2023.
Housing for All’s focus on supply and affordability measures includes those in the rental market. There has been significant engagement with the sector as part of the review of the private rental sector which is due to be completed next month. Issues like rent controls and the regulatory environment are being assessed in detail. As the House will know, last week the Government agreed to extend the rent pressure zone, RPZ, rent restrictions into 2025. My aim is to support a private rental sector that is predictive rather than reactive, a sector that provides an efficient, affordable, safe and secure framework for landlords and tenants alike.
While supply is increasing, we know that challenges remain. Reducing and preventing homelessness remains a top priority for me as Minister and for this Government. Housing for All recognises the particular challenges of homelessness, for families and individuals alike. The homeless quarterly progress report published on Friday, 10 May showed that in quarter 1 of 2024 a total of 653 households exited emergency accommodation, an increase of 7% on quarter 4 of 2023, and an increase of nearly 20% on quarter 1 of 2023.
During the same period, 1,024 households were prevented from entering emergency accommodation by way of a tenancy being created. That is an increase of 60% on the first quarter of 2023.
Looking at the adult homelessness figures, we can see that between 2020 and 2023, 23,446 adults were either prevented from entering emergency accommodation or exited emergency accommodation into secure long-term accommodation. While exits and preventions are increasing, the only solution to resolving the current housing crisis is to increase the supply of social, affordable and private housing. To ensure that this happens, the Government has taken clear and decisive actions to help close the viability gap and reduce construction costs.
Last month I announced an extension of the temporary waiving of local authority development contributions and Uisce Éireann connection charges. The temporary time-limited nature of the waiver and refund schemes have undoubtedly been a factor in influencing the speedier activation of planning permissions by the development sector since they were introduced last year. That is a cost reduction measure and also an activation measure that was sorely and badly needed. We have had over 18,000 commencements in April alone. It shows what an initiative like this can do to stimulate construction. The exemption, along with other measures introduced by the Government, assists in enhancing the viability of developments and incentivising the bringing forward of developments that might not otherwise have been financially viable.
Measures such as the secure tenancy affordable rental, STAR, investment scheme will ensure thousands of cost-rental homes are delivered by 2027. STAR is specifically designed to support the development of cost-rental homes and activate uncommenced sites. In 2023, I approved just short of €60 million to support the delivery of 426 additional cost-rental units, and we continue to look for further opportunities. Cost rental is a tenure that did not exist two years ago but this House legislated for it and now we have thousands of tenancies approved, with thousands of tenants in place. We intend to accelerate that through the AHBs, the private sector and the local authorities and the LDA.
The Project Tosaigh initiative has facilitated the LDA to partner with developers to ensure that delayed or otherwise unviable projects are completed. These homes are made available to tenants and purchasers at affordable rates. The LDA will deliver 5,000 homes under the scheme by 2026. This is in addition to the agency’s pipeline on State-owned or acquired land, where it has a number of projects already under construction.
The Croí Cónaithe cities scheme, introduced to address the current viability gap between the cost of building apartments and the market sale price, is expected to deliver up to 5,000 owner-occupier apartments in urban centres. This will support compact growth and vibrant, liveable cities. Five contracts have been signed to date. That is almost 600 apartments that will be delivered under the scheme, including a 274-unit development in Cork city, the largest private sector apartment development there for over a decade. I want to make sure that we have mixed tenure across our cities and apartments in order that we have affordable, cost-rental and social, as well as private apartments for sale for owner-occupiers.
Supply is key, but Housing for All is not just about delivering the necessary homes for social, affordable and private housing. It is also about setting out pathways to economic, societal and environmental sustainability in the delivery of housing. The plan will ensure that we achieve a more sustainable housing system that is fit for purpose and that will create long-term, vibrant communities with the necessary supporting infrastructure.
As Members are aware, significant work has been conducted to reform our planning system. The largest review of the planning system in more than 20 years culminated in the Planning and Development Bill 2023, which will go to Report Stage in Dáil Éireann next month. When enacted, it will provide a new and updated legislative framework for proper spatial planning and sustainable development across the State. It will ensure that the planning system functions to support and regulate the development of land and infrastructure, enhance natural assets and amenities, and preserve, protect and improve the quality of the environment. It will ensure transparent and timely decision-making within the framework of policy, strategies, plans and consents. This will give stability and certainty to all stakeholders while balancing public policy objectives, environmental considerations and public participation. This Bill will be the cornerstone of Irish planning for decades to come.
The revision of the national planning framework, NPF, has commenced. It is intended that the first draft of the revision will be published in June, followed by a period of consultation before its final publication in September. The revised national planning framework will consider climate transition, demographic change and the implications for future population projections and structural housing demand. The revised NPF, which will be available in the autumn, will update our housing targets. It will be underpinned by a robust evidence base and will take account of up-to-date population numbers and projections. These will allow us to further plan housing delivery in the period to 2030.
Housing for All is a plan that lives up to its name. The trend of increased commencement and completions is proof that the plan is building and sustaining momentum. While the figures show that progress is happening and the plan is having a real effect, we know there is a lot more to do. We will continue doing everything in our power to increase affordability, improve the rental market, eradicate homelessness and fix the housing system for the generations to come.
In conclusion I will touch on the area of vacancy. We have seen a very significant take-up of the vacant homes grant, the Croí Cónaithe grants, with nearly 8,000 applications across the country. I have visited many of these homes. This scheme gives an opportunity for homeowners to buy good properties and bring them back into use, with the State providing up to €70,000 in grants through this scheme alone, while the homeowner is also able to access the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, SEAI, grant. I believe there is much further potential in bringing back vacant homes into use. Our local authorities are doing that extremely well, with 8,500 vacant social homes brought back into use. Most important, they are looking at bringing other significant buildings in towns, villages and cities across the country back into use through the buy-and-renew scheme and the repair-and-lease scheme, which we fully support as well.
I saw significant work being done in Carlow just last week, as it is right across the county. More than 90 homes are being repurposed and brought back into use in Carlow alone. There are repurposed old commercial buildings and significant buildings in the middle of towns that are being brought back into social housing use. Undoubtedly, significant progress has been made. We will continue to build on that progress because we have a plan. It is not only published because we are also working on it and it is being implemented, and it is fully supported through Exchequer funding and Government commitments.
I will touch on two matters relating to defects. As regards apartment defects, we will start with our first four pathfinder schemes very shortly. We are also seeing increased applications to the defective concrete block scheme. These are two very firm commitments the Government made to step in when there was a market failure. It did so not only to get homes back together and remediated but also to help to get people's lives back together. We are seeing an acceleration of applications across affected counties. I recently added County Sligo to the defective concrete blocks scheme. I look forward to the commencement of work on the pathfinder projects on apartment defects because there are legacy issues that need to be dealt with while we are increasing supply. There have been 110,000 new homes built in this country since this Government came into office.