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A HOUSING SUMMIT heard today that just 25,000 homes will be delivered this year, far short of the new housing targets of 50,000 per year.
The Construction Industry Federation / Irish Home Builders’ Association Summit in Croke Park heard contributions from experts in the sector that just 25,000 homes might be delivered in 2025.
The figure of 25,000 on completions was suggested in a contribution from a planning consultancy expert at the conference.
“I know there’s some commentary later today where it is suggested that could go as low as 25,000 this year,” Marian Finnegan, managing director for Sherry Fitzgerald Residential and Advisory told the conference yesterday.
She went on to state that in her view, it could be “plus or minus 10%” on last year’s housing figures of 30,330.
When asked about the predictions at some of the experts at the summit yesterday, the housing minister said it was too early in the year to make such predictions.
Browne said that people are obviously concerned after last year’s figures were missed, calling it “very disappointing”.
The former housing minister Darragh O’Brien and other senior Government figures claimed that close to 40,000 new homes would be built last year, including during the general election campaign.
Data published by the Central Statistics Office revealed that only 30,330 new homes were completed last year – below the target in the Housing for All plan of 33,450 new-builds in 2024.
The Government has been accused of ignoring figures that indicated housing targets would not be met.
Browne told the conference that he is “optimistic” about housing delivery this year, pointing to an increase in commencement orders last year, which he said should come on stream this year.
“It’s very early to be making any kind of predictions,” he said, dismissing the assertions made at the conference today over missed targets.
He said there has been a significant increase in construction activity on the ground in the month of March.
“We’ve seen a lot of the indicators on the ground are actually things are moving,” he added.
The government will have a “better sense” half way through the year if housing targets will be met this year, he added.
“We are working really hard for the last ten weeks and getting a number of different measures ready to go. The national planning framework is really the first big, main one,” said Browne.
The revised NPF, which was approved by Cabinet today, includes new housing targets of 50,000 homes to be built every year.
The minister said local authorities must now move at speed to rezone land in their areas for housing, or else face the “wrath” of the public, he told reporters.
“We’re going to act with real urgency here to get this moving… The core interest here is getting homes for families… and I’ll be moving very, very quickly,” said the minister.
Asked about a MyHome.ie report published today, which noted that the outbreak of a trade war between the United States and the European Union could hit demand for housing in Ireland, Browne said:
“I certainly hope there won’t be a slowdown in supply. We will closely monitor it. If we need to make steps or adjust, we will be flexible that way. But as I said, pent up demand is there from people in Ireland. I think that will continue to drive the need for housing right across the country,” he said.
Speaking about the Strategic Housing Activation Office, the minister said it will be “up and running in the coming weeks”, with the department “in the process now of seconding people from various utilities”.
A small team “of between eight and 12 people” will make up the team, with staff currently being seconded from various utilities, the minister said today.
He said the team will be “operational on the ground”, identifying where there is land that can be used and determining why that land is not being activated.
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Renovation needed at terminal 1
Toliets , floor, ventilation, deep cleaning, bag belts, light looks like mental institutions and the run way grass
@sakk sa: correct. Dub airport is 3rd world stuff. 3rd world compared to other European airports.
@sakk sa: Correct. Was there last week around 11.30 pm….nothing open except Costa.
It may take 25 minutes to get from Dublin Airport to O’Connell Bridge. But it will take you one hour to find public transport to take you there.
Unless you’re familiar with it, finding transport (other than a cab) in Dublin Airport is chaotic. Why no metro??
@Fran Ken: I mean you just walk out to the buses. The airlink has gotten me to the point in less than 20 minutes through the tunnel.
@Fran Ken: Aircoach and the 16 bus stop are right outside the the terminal. Also if you have a late flight and the traffic is light, it doesn’t take half an hour to get from the city centre to the airport, I’ve done it countless times and takes 20 minutes.
@eoin fitzpatrick: When one is familiar with the bus stop locations, transport is good but signage is bad. Skip the Irish bit and give and give clear directions in English.
We are still obsessed with Metro connections to city centre! Lots of cities have good and cheap bus connections running 24/7 – thats all Dublin needs. If thats not enough, extend the luas from cabra to finglas but keep going, its only about 6kms further.
@Ben dover: ye can forget about the metro,the rest of the country needs half decent roads
@Ben dover: we have an airport with 34 million arrivals. It’s chaos trying to get a taxi or wait in the rain to get on a 41 or 16, that often ‘disappear’ from the departure board. We need a metro to unlock north Dublin for housing as well as serving the airport, throwing on a few extra buses doesn’t cut it.
@Kevin O’Hara: exactly. It’s more than just the airport that needs a metro. Huge areas like Swords, Santry, Whitehall etc. are in dire need, Swords especially, of a good public service. 40,000 plus people in Swords and all they have is 1 Dublin bus service (technically two but it’s as rare as hens teeth) and an expensive and very slow private service in the swords “express”. The North County Dublin population is ever expanding too. A luas isn’t suffice to handle huge numbers at peak times.
@Kevin O’Hara: talking nonsense. plenty of adequate bus services are taxis the many many many times I have arrived to Dublin airport.
@Ben dover: someone please explain to me why not just extend the DART to Dublin Airport… It would have wat cheaper years ago but looks still mostly green fields today, simple gut and cover most of the way
@Jack Dermody: your idea makes sense at first glance, but a DART extension now would further increase traffic at Connolly Station, which is already overused. It would create even more delays to the North DART+Drogheda+Belfast route.
The best solution would be a Metro line from Swords to Heuston via airport, Ballymun, Santry, Glasnevin, GPO, Stephen’s Green and The Liberties.
Then bore a 2nd and 3rd line to create a real network.
Failing that, a Luas along the same route, joining the existing Green line after the Mater.
@Niall English: I would love to know what time(s) you’re arriving into Dublin airport. Plenty of occasions I’ve ditched the idea of a taxi with the queues 40/50 people plus deep. Can be left waiting 25 mins for a Dublin bus to town. It’s the usual Irish mindset, no forward thinking. We’re growing rapidly as a population. Roads are maxed out, Whitehall is a carpark at rush hour as is the m50. We pretend to be a modern city without the modern infrastructure. A metro isn’t just for now. Reminds me of the time the m50 was built. All the experts said 3 lanes each side, the powers that be didn’t listen. Less than 10 years later they had to construct a 3rd lane due to demand.
@David Linehan: just use Freenow or Uber from the specified area. Takes 2 mins.
@Graham Carrick: do we have them now at the airport? I know plenty around Europe have designated uber, freenow, bolt, pick up points. No brainer, saves the hassle alright
Frankfurt Haan is simply not in Frankfurt. It’s the “Ryanair definition”. Frankfurter Flughafen on the other hand is awesome, less than 20 min on a train to the centre of the city.
You didn’t mention the airport at Nice. Very close, but don’t take a cab for that couple of miles trip because it is a rip-off!
If you’re going to Paris, CDG airport with EasyJet from Belfast might be a good option.
It’s a relief that the “ it’s all FF or FG’s fault” people are not up yet.
It’s not 15km from the airport to town.
I actually really enjoyed reading this article because it offered a balanced viewpoint about Dublin Airport. There’s no denying that it has plenty of problems, but the ease of access is something that we have that other airports around Europe do not have. It’s only 12km from Dublin Airport into Dublin City itself and barring bad traffic, you’re going to be in Temple Bar in 20 minutes. I’ve been to many countries across Europe and not many of the airports have the luxury of being so close to the cities that they serve. There are plenty of ways that Dublin Airport can be improved though. For a start, the anti-market passenger cap needs to be lifted immediately. Terminal 1 needs modernisation and an increase in facilities to cater to travellers who have to stop for a connecting flight there.
The imminent ‘Dublin-City’ Airport will double as a social aspect clean up when the now defunct o connell street becomes a runway… deadly, wha?
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