Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 24 June 2021
59. Deputy Duncan Smith asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage his views on and if he has concerns regarding the amount of homes the public sector is purchasing from the open market to make up for the lack of housing supply; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33754/21]
View answerAs set out in the Programme for Government, a key focus for the delivery of social housing is for the majority of the 50,000 new units to be delivered over the next five-years, to be built by local authorities, Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs) and State agencies. This is part of our focus to prioritise the increased supply of public, social, and affordable homes.
While this will be the majority approach to delivery, I still see some level of acquisitions of existing properties to be a valuable part of the delivery of social housing, recognising that in some areas of the country, good value for money can be obtained. In those situations, it can make sense for local authorities to undertake acquisitions in a targeted and strategic manner.
I have directed local authorities and AHBs where they undertake such targeted acquisitions, that they do not compete with private purchasers and leave value in the market particularly for first-time buyers. However within these constraints, acquisitions by local authorities can be cheaper than construction and allows them to make best use of existing housing stock. I have also asked local authorities to increasingly target vacant and derelict properties that can be brought back to use as part of new public housing delivery.
Where local authorities and AHBs engage with developers to acquire newly developed housing through turnkey arrangements, this is done on the basis that there is not undue interference in private housing supply and in most cases, the developments are ones that would not have been undertaken without the interest of a local authority or an AHB.
I am determined that the Government’s new ‘Housing for All’ national strategy will put in place the resources to deliver new public housing based in the main on delivery by local authorities, AHBs and State agencies with property acquisitions from the open market being a targeted and strategic aspect only of delivery.
