Latest estimates from the Central Bank show that the government will struggle to come anywhere close to reaching its housing delivery targets over the next five years, according to Social Democrats TD Rory Hearne.
Deputy Hearne, who is the party’s housing spokesperson, said:
“In its latest quarterly bulletin, the Central Bank has revised its house completion projections downwards, blaming shortages of critical water and energy infrastructure as major constraints on supply.
“According to its forecasts, just 32,500 homes will be built this year, rising to 36,000 in 2026 and 40,000 in 2027.
“This is nowhere near enough to ease our housing crisis, which has turned into a social catastrophe. The latest estimates prove that the Programme for Government commitment to deliver 300,000 homes by 2030 is just pie in the sky, with no real plan in place to achieve this target.
“Given the previous FF/FG-led government’s false promise to deliver 40,000 homes last year – a blatant attempt to mislead voters before the general election – it is difficult to take any of their housing targets seriously.
“The Central Bank’s figures deal another blow to the government’s claims that its housing policies are working.
“We are again seeing tens of thousands of our young people leaving our shores. This time, emigration is not down to a shortage of jobs, but is happening because of a lack of affordable housing. Students are being locked out of third level education due to the housing crisis, while over half a million adults are still living in their childhood bedrooms, unable to start independent lives.
“Yesterday, the Taoiseach stated the obvious when he said the solution to the housing crisis is supply. However, his government’s only plan to increase supply is to allow rents to rise and reduce apartment standards to entice investor funds.
“We need a Covid-style emergency response and innovative ideas to get us out of this crisis.
“The Social Democrats have proposed a Homes for Ireland Savings Account (HISA), which would leverage some of the €160 billion in Irish savings to build tens of thousands of affordable homes over the next five years. These would be delivered directly by builders employed by the State, local authorities and Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs).
“Such an approach would decrease the government’s reliance on investment funds for housing delivery – a flawed policy choice that only results in the supply of unaffordable homes.”
September 18, 2025