Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 28 September 2022
144. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if his Department has collated figures from local authorities to assess whether the number of housing units with funding approved will actually be delivered within the timeframes indicated in local authority plans; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47397/22]
View answerHousing for All, is the Government’s plan to increase the supply of housing to an average of 33,000 per year over the next decade. Housing for All is supported by an investment package of over €4bn per annum, through an overall combination of €12bn in direct Exchequer funding, €3.5bn in funding through the Land Development Agency and €5bn funding through the Housing Finance Agency.
Under Housing for All, the Government will deliver 47,600 new build social homes and 3,500 social homes through long-term leasing in the period 2022-2026. In September 2021, I issued social housing targets to each local authority for the period 2022-2026 and in March I issued local authority targets for affordable purchase and cost-rental.
A key action of Housing for All is that local authorities will develop and submit Housing Delivery Action Plans to include details of social and affordable housing delivery. The Plans set out details of both social and affordable housing delivery as appropriate over the period 2022-2026, in line with targets set under Housing for All. These Plans are available on the websites of the relevant local authorities. To support local authorities social and affordable housing delivery, The Housing Delivery Coordination Office (HDCO) has been established within the Local Government Management Agency (LGMA), to provide co-ordination of all Local Authority housing activities, including all aspects of social and affordable housing procurement and delivery.
My Department publishes comprehensive programme level statistics on a quarterly basis on social housing delivery activity in all local authorities. This data is available until the end of Quarter 1 2022 and is published on the statistics page of my Department’s website, at the following link: www.gov.ie/en/collection/6060e-overall-social-housing-provision/ .
My Department also publishes the Social Housing Construction Status Report (CSR). The CSR provides details of social housing developments and their location that have been completed, are under construction or are progressing through the various stages of the design and tender processes. The most recent publication was for Quarter 1 2022. All Construction Status Reports are available at the following link: gov.ie - Social Housing Construction Projects - Status Reports (www.gov.ie). A version of the Q1 2022 CSR file can also be downloaded for analysis at the link: Social Housing Construction Status Report Q1 2022 - Dataset - Dept of Housing, Local Government and Heritage. The Quarter 2 social housing statistics are being collated and will be published shortly, in conjunction with the Quarter 2 Construction Status Report.
Under Housing for All, the Government will deliver 54,000 affordable homes between now and 2030, to be facilitated by local authorities, Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs), the Land Development Agency (LDA) and through a strategic partnership between the State and retail banks. 2022 represents the first year of a very ambitious programme of delivery of affordable housing. Significant funding has been secured and is being made available to support delivery of affordable housing for purchase or for cost rental by local authorities, AHBs and by the LDA.
Local authorities have been asked to begin collating information on delivery of affordable homes in their area in the same manner as is currently done for social housing. It is intended that information on delivery across all delivery streams will be gathered by my Department and I expect that my Department will be in a position to begin reporting on affordable delivery in national quarterly delivery statistics later this year.
