Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 24 June 2021
5. Deputy Michael McNamara asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if his Department has consulted the construction sector regarding the growing impact on housing construction on the shortage of timber and the inflating ever cost of same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33843/21]
View answerAs the Minister of State will be aware, small one-off builders and self-builders are also important to the supply of housing in Ireland, particularly in rural areas. Accessing materials is increasingly difficult. I refer to timber in particular. The supply is drying up. A simple length of 4" X 2" was €8 last year and is now €13. One of the main builder's suppliers in Clare is no longer stocking timber. Builders will not give quotes of more than a month's duration because of inflation in the cost of supplies. I refer not just to timber, but to materials generally. What is the Minister's Department going to do about this? What can it do?
Increasing the supply of housing is a priority for the Government and for our Department in particular. I am fully aware that the construction sector has faced a number of considerable challenges over the past year, not least the restrictions on construction activity introduced to combat the spread of Covid-19 and the impact of Brexit and related supply issues. Throughout this period, colleagues across Government have engaged with representatives from across the sector. Indeed the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, met with the Irish Home Builders Association recently, on 12 June, and the issue of increases in materials was one of the issues raised.
Across Europe, supply issues have been affecting the price of timber due to increased demand. Other construction materials such as steel, concrete and plastics have also been affected and these developments are being monitored closely internationally. However, while the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland tender price index reveals that national construction tender prices increased by 1.3% in the second half of 2020, it is still significantly less than tender price inflation levels being experienced before the Covid-19 pandemic. While there was elevated construction sector inflation in 2019, construction price inflation slowed overall in 2020 as a result of Covid-19.
The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform facilitates the construction sector group. This group considers opportunities to introduce reforms to assist with tackling inflation in the wider construction sector.
I find it a strange construct that one asks the Minister a question only for his junior Minister to read out a prepared script telling us all the wonderful things the Minister is doing. It is to be hoped this is a time for questions and answers rather than propaganda. I appreciate that the supply of building materials is, by and large, a private endeavour but if these issues are preventing the supply of housing in Ireland, which it is and increasingly will, is there anything the Government can do? I do not really mind who answers the question. I am particularly concerned about timber. There is a lot of timber growing in Ireland and much of that is past the point of maturity. Many landowners across Clare are looking for felling licences. There is chaos in the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, particularly in its forestry section. As the Minister of State answered, perhaps he might talk to Senator Hackett, who is the Minister of State with responsibility for this, and tell her to get things moving.
To clarify, the three Ministers are here to answer questions on the issues being raised today. I am very aware of the current challenges in the forestry sector and I acknowledge the implications of delays to the granting of licences for the wider industry and for the construction sector. We are fully aware of that. I am in regular contact with my colleague, the Minister of State, Senator Hackett. She is working with a range of stakeholders to address this issue, particularly through Project Woodland. It is a very difficult situation and we acknowledge that. We are hopeful that the current process will resolve the problems and work towards a solution to address the issue of felling licences in particular.
The Government has been in place for more than 12 months. This Dáil has been in place for a bit longer again. This problem predates this Government. I acknowledge that the problem did not arise under Senator Hackett's watch but she has been in office for a while now and I am not hearing of any increase in the number of felling licences granted. I appreciate that there are environmental issues around forestry policy but these are not the problem here, although we need to address them. One can blame people who object to planning or felling licences but other countries have much more environmental protection in place and do not have the same problems sourcing timber as us. There is a logjam in the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine with regard to issuing felling licences. I sometimes question whether there might be a degree of market manipulation being carried out by large plantation owners and whether the Department is complicit in that. One or way or the other, there is a very significant problem. Timber mills cannot get timber so they cannot mill it and sell it on. Small builders just cannot get timber as a result.
The Deputy is correct. It is a significant challenge. As I have said, the Minister of State, Senator Hackett, and the Minister, Deputy McConalogue, are determined to resolve these issues, the logjam about which the Deputy has spoken. There is no doubt but that this has had, and continues to have, a significant impact on the construction sector in Ireland. The Deputy specifically mentioned small construction companies and small one-off builders. This issue is particularly impacting on them, although it is also impacting on the larger-scale builders in the sector. I am convinced and remain confident that Project Woodland and the measures taken by the Department will resolve these issues within a reasonable period and bring supply back into the market. That is something we all want to see.
