I must now deal with a deferred division on the ministerial amendment to the motion re affordable housing. Last Thursday, 21 September, on the question, "That amendment No. 1 be made", a division was claimed, and in accordance with Standing Order 80(2), that division must be taken now.
Affordable Housing: Motion (Resumed) [Private Members]
The following motion was moved by Deputy Cian O'Callaghan on Thursday, 21 September 2023:
That Dáil Éireann:
notes that:
— the cost of buying a home has increased by more than 25 per cent since this Government came into office;
— it now costs almost €330,000 on average to buy a home, an increase of more than €66,000 since 2020 and €90,000 since 2017;
— the median income for first-time buyers of new homes is now more than €90,000 and more than €103,000 in Dublin;
— there are more than 520,000 adults living in their childhood bedrooms, a 14 per cent rise since 2016, and a 19 per cent increase since Fine Gael took office in 2011;
— the rate of home ownership is continuing to decline and is at a 30-year low;
— the share of 25-34 year-olds who own their own home more than halved between 2004 and 2019, falling from 60 per cent to just 27 per cent; and
— rent prices are at record highs, having more than doubled in a decade and having increased by more than 20 per cent since this Government took office;
acknowledges that:
— a lack of affordable housing is forcing adults to live at home, which can have a negative impact on mental health, self-esteem, employment prospects, the ability to form and maintain relationships and connection to communities;
— a lack of affordable housing is having a negative impact on the economy, resulting in staffing shortages across the public and private sectors;
— these staffing shortages are particularly acute when it comes to teachers, nurses, Gardaí and other important public sector workers in urban areas; and
— a lack of affordable housing is forcing students to defer college places or change third-level education plans;
further notes that:
— zero affordable purchase homes were delivered in 2020;
— zero affordable purchase homes were delivered in 2021;
— just 323 affordable purchase homes were delivered in 2022;
— the Government missed its target for the delivery of affordable purchase and Cost Rental homes by 70 per cent in 2022;
— the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage failed to spend €1 billion of his capital budget between 2020 and 2022; and
— adult homelessness has increased by more than 40 per cent since this Government took office and child homelessness is up by 44 per cent; and
calls on the Government to:
— publish figures for the delivery of affordable homes in 2023;
— increase the target for affordable purchase and Cost Rental homes to 10,000 homes per year;
— introduce a punitive tax on vacancy;
— reinstate the ban on no-fault evictions to protect renters from homelessness; and
— stop investing public money in the delivery of private rental-only developments that are unaffordable to rent and unavailable to buy.
Debate resumed on amendment No. 1:
To delete all the words after "Dáil Éireann" and substitute the following:
"notes that Housing for All: A New Housing Plan is firmly focussed on re-establishing a sustainable housing delivery system capable of delivering for current and emerging needs and the Government:
— is actively working to improve Ireland's housing system and deliver more homes of all tenures for people with varying housing needs, including first-time buyers, renters, low-income households, and people experiencing homelessness;
— has a vision for the housing system over the longer term to achieve a steady supply of housing in the right locations with economic, social and environmental sustainability built into the system with four pathways to achieving housing for all:
— supporting home ownership and increasing affordability;
— eradicating homelessness, increasing social housing delivery and supporting social inclusion;
— increasing new housing supply; and
— addressing vacancy and efficient use of existing stock;
— is successfully increasing new housing supply, with a combination of public and private sector development, through State-led investment in expanded social and affordable housing programmes; and
— is removing barriers that impede the private sector capacity to deliver at scale, critical to the successful implementation of Housing for All: A New Housing Plan, and which will yield housing affordability and reverse the historic decline in home ownership;
welcomes:
— that housing supply is increasing, and will continue to be increased incrementally and sustainably;
— that Housing for All: A New Housing Plan is succeeding in its objective of increasing overall housing supply in a robust and sustainable manner; and in 2022, almost 30,000 homes were built, an increase of 45.2 per cent from 2021, and 5,250 homes or 21 per cent higher than the Housing for All: A New Housing Plan target of 24,600; and the first half of 2023 has seen 14,017 home completions, the highest for this period since the Central Statistics Office (CSO) data series began in 2011;
— the fact that new home commencements continue to out-perform expectations following the strong uptick in commencements recorded in the fourth quarter of 2022; 18,500 new homes were commenced between January and July this year, up 12 per cent on the same period last year; and this strong commencement activity, and a recent upward trend in planning permissions, indicates that the uplift in 2022 house building activity is likely to be maintained in 2023, when delivery of 29,000 homes is anticipated, and sustained into 2024 and 2025;
— the fact that 10,263 social homes were delivered in 2022 (an 11.9 per cent increase on 2021 figures, when 9,169 social homes were provided); and this represents the highest annual output of social homes in decades and the highest level of delivery of new-build social housing since 1975;
— the fact that 40,000 more families are in social housing than ten years ago and the proportion of people in social housing has increased in the past ten years;
— the record growth in mortgage drawdowns by first-time buyers, with drawdowns at their highest level since 2007 running at 400-500 per week;
— the fact that the proportion of adults living with their parents has remained stable at 13 per cent since 2011;
— the fact that more households own their own home than ever before, at over 1.2 million;
— the fact that a record €4.5 billion in State housing investment in 2023 will ensure the substantial uplift in supply in 2022 can be maintained and exceeded, with 9,100 direct build social homes and 5,500 affordable homes to be delivered; and
— the fact that new measures announced by the Government in April 2023 will further boost the improved levels of housing activity, such as:
— reducing the cost of construction by scrapping the development levies required to connect new homes with roads, water and other services, and subsidising development levies, saving up to the value of €12,650 per home on average – this will reduce the cost of building a home and will apply for a limited time only to act as an incentive;
— increasing the pace at which vacant and derelict properties are renovated for new housing by enhancing grants available to cut the cost of restoring empty homes and making it easier to apply – from May 2023 the Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant has been:
— increased from €30,000 to €50,000 for vacant properties;
— increased from €50,000 to €70,000 for derelict properties;
— extended to cover houses built up to 2007; and
— made available for properties intended for rental as well as owner-occupation; and
— the Government is supporting the construction of affordable apartments for Cost Rental and facilitating the commencement of thousands of affordable apartments to rent, which have planning permission but which are not being progressed – with a substantial subsidy for a limited time only to speed up construction; and the Secure Tenancy Affordable Rental investment (STAR) scheme, along with a revision of the terms of the Cost Rental Equity Loan, which increased the level of overall State funding on a sliding scale basis to up to 55 per cent of capital costs, were launched in July and are now receiving applications; and STAR is targeted at all private market operators, including the Land Development Agency, and is underpinned by a Government commitment of up to €750 million to deliver 4,000 Cost Rental units at more affordable rent; and
supports the Government housing policy which is succeeding in restoring the first-time buyer to playing a key role in the new and existing house sales market, and is actively assisting and supporting individuals and families on modest incomes to purchase their own home at an affordable price as evidenced by:
— the launch of the Help to Buy (HTB) Scheme in 2017 which has, to date, assisted over 41,000 first-time buyer households to secure a new home and has been extended to 2024;
— the CSO Residential Property Price Index underlining the substantial growth in first-time buyer activity - some 17,220 homes, including circa 5,280 new homes, were purchased by first-time buyers in the year to July 2023 – an 8 per cent increase on the previous year and one-third of all homes purchased by households in the period;
— recent Banking and Payment Federation of Ireland figures illustrating record growth in mortgage drawdowns by first-time buyers, with drawdowns currently at their highest level since 2007;
— the 'Owner Occupier Guarantee', under which local authorities can now designate a specified number of units in a development for first-time buyers and owner occupiers; and in May 2021 changes were also made to the rate of stamp duty payable on bulk purchases and new planning guidelines were issued to prevent inappropriate investment in homes and duplexes and to ensure household purchasers, and social or affordable housing are not displaced by inappropriate commercial activity – some 31,000 homes received planning permission with conditions prohibiting bulk purchase by, or multiple sale to, a single purchaser in the two years from May 2021 to May 2023;
— the First Home Scheme, launched on 7th July, 2022, which supports first-time buyers in purchasing new houses and apartments in the private market through the use of an equity share model; and according to the most recent scheme data available, some 6,000 applicants have registered and over 2,362 applicants have been approved under the scheme and received eligibility certificates; and interest in First Homes is strong, with new applications for approval showing a strong momentum and the scheme will continue to be central to the overall affordable housing response nationwide;
— delivery of the first Local Authority Affordable Purchase homes in a generation in 2022, which saw 323 homes delivered for approved affordable housing applicants on a shared equity basis, and the growing pipeline of homes with Affordable Housing Fund approval for delivery as affordable purchase homes, which currently stands at over 2,700 homes across 19 local authorities, and continues to be expanded and developed; and
— the Croí Cónaithe (Cities) Scheme which will support the building of up to 5,000 apartments for sale to owner-occupiers;
further notes that affordable housing supply at scale will continue to be developed and expanded through the mix of new and extended initiatives now in place and operating effectively, including the First Home scheme, local authority-provided affordable purchase schemes, the HTB initiative and the expanded Local Authority Home Loan; and taken together, the suite of affordable measures will make homeownership achievable for tens of thousands of individuals and families during the lifetime of Housing for All: A New Housing Plan;
acknowledges the close monitoring of the Residential Tenancies Acts 2004-2022, and the operation of the rental market by the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, the Residential Tenancies Board and the Housing Agency and further acknowledges that:
— a comprehensive review of the private rental sector is currently taking account of the significant regulatory changes in the residential rental market over the past several years; and the review is essential to planning future policy for the residential rented sector and will report on how our housing system can be enhanced to provide an efficient, affordable, viable, safe and secure framework for both tenants and landlords;
— current private rental market challenges cannot be resolved without the combined benefits of public and private investment;
— some €13.5 billion of development finance is required each year to achieve the current average Housing for All: A New Housing Plan target output of 33,000 homes annually, with the vast majority of this required from private sources and – alongside public investment – is the only way to deliver the housing needed at substantial scale;
— institutional investment is a critical piece of this overall investment – it is a normal facet of housing systems across Europe and beyond and without it activity in the housing market would be much reduced and the pressure already facing renters and prospective home-owners would increase significantly;
— an important role has been played by this investment, particularly in the development of new high-density urban housing in recent years, and the importance of maintaining this investment;
— the Government has strengthened regulatory controls on short-term lets and approval has been given for the priority drafting of the Registration of Short-Term Tourist Letting Bill and publication of the General Scheme of the Bill; and the legislation will deliver on the Housing for All: A New Housing Plan objective to make more efficient use of existing housing stock with the establishment of the Fáilte Ireland registration system;
— rental affordability continues to be a priority concern for the Government; and Cost Rental accommodation was introduced by this Government as a new form of housing tenure in Ireland offering long-term security of tenure at cost-based rents that are at least 25 per cent below the private market rate for comparable properties;
— to date, 770 Cost Rental homes have been delivered by Approved Housing Bodies, Local Authorities and the Land Development Agency; and over 1,400 local authority Cost Rental units (across 12 projects) have been approved to date for assistance totaling €150 million from the Affordable Housing Fund, including 50 units already delivered at Enniskerry Road; and the pipeline of Cost Rental homes will continue to be developed and expanded on an ongoing basis; and
— there has also been an extension of the Rent Pressure Zone (RPZ) system to 2024 and a 2 per cent rent cap; and
accepts that Housing for All: A New Housing Plan is an iterative and responsive action-based plan that is not limited to or confined by implementation of its original suite of 213 measures which are subject to regular monitoring and review, with updated and new measures being added as and when required and welcomes:
— the second annual review of Housing for All: A New Housing Plan actions currently underway and this process will conclude and the next Housing for All Action Plan Update will be published following the Budget in October; and
— the proposed refreshing of housing targets, including for social and affordable housing, having regard to the Census 2022 data and updated population and structural housing demand projections on foot of analysis being undertaken by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) for the National Planning Framework revision; and this work by the ESRI will be finalised in Spring 2024, paving the way for housing demand and needs to be reassessed and new targets to be revised later next year."
-(Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage)
Amendment put:
The Dáil divided: Tá, 68; Níl, 53; Staon, 0.
Tá
- Brophy, Colm.
- Browne, James.
- Bruton, Richard.
- Burke, Colm.
- Butler, Mary.
- Byrne, Thomas.
- Cahill, Jackie.
- Calleary, Dara.
- Cannon, Ciarán.
- Carroll MacNeill, Jennifer.
- Chambers, Jack.
- Collins, Niall.
- Costello, Patrick.
- Cowen, Barry.
- Creed, Michael.
- Devlin, Cormac.
- Dillon, Alan.
- Donnelly, Stephen.
- Durkan, Bernard J.
- English, Damien.
- Farrell, Alan.
- Feighan, Frankie.
- Flaherty, Joe.
- Flanagan, Charles.
- Fleming, Sean.
- Griffin, Brendan.
- Harris, Simon.
- Haughey, Seán.
- Heydon, Martin.
- Higgins, Emer.
- Humphreys, Heather.
- Kehoe, Paul.
- Lahart, John.
- Lawless, James.
- Leddin, Brian.
- Madigan, Josepha.
- Martin, Catherine.
- Martin, Micheál.
- Matthews, Steven.
- McAuliffe, Paul.
- McGrath, Michael.
- McHugh, Joe.
- Moynihan, Aindrias.
- Moynihan, Michael.
- Murnane O'Connor, Jennifer.
- Naughton, Hildegarde.
- Noonan, Malcolm.
- O'Brien, Joe.
- O'Callaghan, Jim.
- O'Connor, James.
- O'Donnell, Kieran.
- O'Donovan, Patrick.
- O'Dowd, Fergus.
- O'Gorman, Roderic.
- O'Sullivan, Christopher.
- O'Sullivan, Pádraig.
- Ó Cathasaigh, Marc.
- Ó Cuív, Éamon.
- Phelan, John Paul.
- Rabbitte, Anne.
- Richmond, Neale.
- Ring, Michael.
- Smith, Brendan.
- Smyth, Niamh.
- Smyth, Ossian.
- Stanton, David.
- Troy, Robert.
- Varadkar, Leo.
Níl
- Andrews, Chris.
- Bacik, Ivana.
- Barry, Mick.
- Boyd Barrett, Richard.
- Brady, John.
- Browne, Martin.
- Buckley, Pat.
- Carthy, Matt.
- Collins, Joan.
- Collins, Michael.
- Conway-Walsh, Rose.
- Cronin, Réada.
- Crowe, Seán.
- Cullinane, David.
- Daly, Pa.
- Doherty, Pearse.
- Donnelly, Paul.
- Ellis, Dessie.
- Fitzmaurice, Michael.
- Fitzpatrick, Peter.
- Funchion, Kathleen.
- Gannon, Gary.
- Guirke, Johnny.
- Healy-Rae, Michael.
- Howlin, Brendan.
- Kenny, Gino.
- Kenny, Martin.
- Kerrane, Claire.
- Mac Lochlainn, Pádraig.
- McGrath, Mattie.
- Mitchell, Denise.
- Munster, Imelda.
- Murphy, Catherine.
- Murphy, Paul.
- Mythen, Johnny.
- Nash, Ged.
- Nolan, Carol.
- O'Callaghan, Cian.
- O'Reilly, Louise.
- O'Rourke, Darren.
- Ó Broin, Eoin.
- Ó Murchú, Ruairí.
- Ó Ríordáin, Aodhán.
- Ó Snodaigh, Aengus.
- Pringle, Thomas.
- Quinlivan, Maurice.
- Ryan, Patricia.
- Sherlock, Sean.
- Shortall, Róisín.
- Smith, Bríd.
- Stanley, Brian.
- Tóibín, Peadar.
- Wynne, Violet-Anne.
Staon
Tellers: Tá, Deputies Hildegarde Naughton and Cormac Devlin; Níl, Deputies Cian O'Callaghan and Catherine Murphy.
Amendment declared carried.
Motion, as amended, agreed to.