Minister acknowledges 2025 housing target unlikely to be met
Minister for Housing James Browne has acknowledged the Government is unlikely to meet its target of building 41,000 homes this year.
It follows a forecast from the ESRI which predicts just over 34,000 properties will be completed this year.
On RTÉ's Prime Time, Mr Browne accepted that the estimate aligns with other forecasts, saying: "I wouldn't be surprised if that is the figure at the end of this year."
"The ESRI predictions would seem to be in line with many other predictions as well.
"It's quite difficult at this time of the year, halfway through, to predict exactly what the outturn will be.
"Some properties coming towards the end may get completed in the last quarter, or they might fall into the next year. But it does seem to be very much on trend," he said.
Last year, 30,330 homes were completed. Minister Browne described the 41,000 target as "extremely challenging coming off that base".
The Government's long-term targets say that it will deliver 300,000 homes by 2030.
Asked if he thought that figure was unrealistic, Mr Browne responded: "I think anyone making predictions for years three, four, and five in the lifetime of this Government is very dangerous.
"It's difficult enough to predict in the middle of the year, what's going to happen at the end of the year.
"The State is now delivering approximately 50% of all homes in this country," he added.
"But if we're going to get up to 50,000 or 60,000 homes per year so people can have the homes they need, we have to activate the private sector."
"That number of 41,000 was always going to be extremely challenging coming off that base..."
Housing Minister James Browne is asked about housing targets of 41,000 this year, following an ESRI forecast predicting 34,000 homes will be completed. @rtenews pic.twitter.com/tNE346u6sS
— RTÉ Prime Time (@RTE_PrimeTime) May 27, 2025
Earlier, Minister Browne announced a legislative change that will allow planning permissions stalled by judicial reviews to be extended, one of a host of measures he says he is bringing forward.
"That legislation will pass very quickly," he said. "We expect [it] by the summer break and certainly no later than September.
"What we don't want to do is simply extend plannings for the sake of it, but we want to save existing planning permissions because they're plannings that can turn into real homes very quickly.
"All the other measures we want to take to activate housing, we need the plannings to actually exist to do that."
Mr Brown also responded to recent reports that backbench TDs had concerns about his performance as minister.
"I was appointed as Minister for Housing, I think, on the back of my delivery as a minister of state in the Department of Justice, where I really just focused on the end result ... That's what I'm doing in housing, and that's why I've made some critical decisions already.
"But over the next six or eight weeks, some very significant announcement will be made," he said.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
RTÉ News
an hour ago
- RTÉ News
Up to 1,000 people partake in Raise the Roof rally in Cork
Up to 1,000 people took to the streets of Cork this afternoon calling for urgent Government action to end homelessness and the housing crisis. The rally, under the umbrella of the Raise the Roof campaign, followed last Tuesday's protest outside the Dáil in Dublin. The national campaign is organised by a coalition of trade unions and Opposition political parties. Among the unions present were SIPTU, Fórsa, the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation and the Community Action Tenants Union. Joe Kelly of the Cork Council of Trade Unions said it was great to see people coming out in force to demand that there is a change to the housing policy of the Government. "People are very angry. We have workers on all sides of the economy and they are just priced out of housing. People have good jobs and they still can't a roof over their head," he said. TDs and councillors from Sinn Féín, the Green Party, the Labour Party and the Social Democtrats marched as did members of People Before Profit, the Socialist Party, the Irish Traveller Movement and Derelict Ireland. Jude Sherry and Frank O'Connor of Derelict Ireland carried a banner showing dozens of photographs of derelict homes from across the country. Ms Sherry said: "The whole of the country is crumbling. Every town, village and city has vacant and derelict properties in it. "So we have enough homes in Ireland to meet the emergency of getting everyone a home, even just the amount of council homes in the country is enough to ensure there is no child in emergency accommodation or going without a home." Labour Senator Laura Harmon said the State has to step in to build houses. "Something absolutely has to be done, we are losing teachers, gardaí, nurses, key workers from this country because of the housing crisis. I believe the housing crisis is the biggest threat to our economy here in Ireland, we need to treat it like an emergency," she said. Social Demoncrats TD Pádraig Rice said their message is that the Government's housing policy have failed and they need to change, while Sinn Féin's Thomas Gould said the clear message from today's rally is that "we need homes, and we need them now".
The Irish Sun
5 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
New larger Child Benefit payments plan with extra top-up rate on €140 cash for families with three or more kids
FAMILIES with three or more children could soon be receiving larger Child Benefit payments under new plans being examined by the Government. The move is being looked at to try and boost birth rates, it has been reported. Advertisement This week, The €140 flat payment will still be paid to everyone, regardless of income. The €140 payment per child is currently the same regardless of the number of However, a higher top-up rate could also be paid for the third and subsequent children to encourage more births. Advertisement Read more in Money A policy paper is currently being worked on to set out the options ahead of the budget. Other areas being examined to reduce child poverty levels are payments for children of primary-school age, lone parents, working families on low incomes and children with disabilities. The Taoiseach has also pointed to initiatives such as free He said: 'We are looking at a range of measures, in respect of the next budget, to bring down child poverty.' Advertisement Most read in Money Child Benefit payments are universal, and are paid to parents regardless of their income - but it has risen by less than €10 in the last 20 years. Little known social welfare benefits thousands are entitled to The monthly payment for a first child was €131.60 in 2004 and stands at €140 now, just six per cent higher. CHILD BENEFIT PAYMENT DATES THERE are five Child Benefit payments left in the year. July 1 August 5 - may be paid early due to August Bank Holiday September 2 October 7 November 4 The Child Benefit rate reached €166 during the Celtic Tiger era, but was reduced during the recession to its current rate. Research by the State's economic think tank looked at the effect of bringing in a second tier of Child Benefit to address child poverty, at a cost of €800m. Advertisement NO SUMMER DOUBLE CHILD BENEFIT BOOST A DOUBLE €280 August Child Benefit promised by Fine Gael leader Simon Harris last year is unlikely to hit the accounts of the over 650,000 Irish families who benefit from the boost. In November 2024, then Taoiseach In a post on Instagram, he said: "A double child benefit payment every August to help parents with costs, particularly around the costs of schools and the additional costs parents often face over the summer. "Please share to spread the word. I need your support for Fine Gael so I can get on with delivering on this agenda." However, his proposed August double payment is unlikely to happen. When asked this month if the double August Child Benefit is being considered, the Department of Social Protection confirmed that the boost is not outlined in the Programme for Government. 1 The move is being looked at to try and boost birth rates, it has been reported Credit: Getty Images - Getty
RTÉ News
12 hours ago
- RTÉ News
€122 billion investment needed by 2030 to meet housing targets
A new survey reveals that a total investment of €121.6 billion is needed between now and 2030 if Ireland is to meet its housing targets. Deloitte's new Crane Survey Report found that an investment of €16.4 billion is required this year, rising to €17.2 bilion in 2026, €19.3 billion in 2027, €21.3 billion in 2028, €23.3 billion in 2029 and €24.1 billion by 2030 to achieve the Government's target of 60,000 homes a year. Deloitte said that given the scale of the challenge, Ireland is unlikely to reach or maintain the annual output of 60,000 homes. The Deloitte Crane Survey Report is a comprehensive analysis of construction activity across Irish cities, tracking what is being built and where and what this means for the country's economic and social priorities. The latest Crane Survey report estimates a total housing output of 33,000 this year, below the Government's target of 41,000. Risks to delivery in 2025 are "tilted to the downside", according to the report, which adds that in the absence of a "healthy planning pipeline" it is very difficult to see the required level of 60,000 homes a year being achieved in the first instance or maintained. A total of just over 30,230 new homes were delivered in 2024, a drop of 7% on 2023. Meanwhile, just 32,400 homes were granted planning permission last year, down 3%. Deloitte said this figure is "particularly stark" as it represents just two-thirds of what is needed each year if Ireland is to deliver the 60,000 homes a year required to meet current housing need and future population growth. Its analysis shows the drop in granted planning permissions was driven by a substantial reduction in the number of apartments which received planning, down 39% year on year. It noted that commencements soared to 69,060 units in 2024, up 121% year on year, but this was linked to expiring incentives, which were ultimately extended. Commencements have been subdued in the opening months of this year, it added. Deloitte said the Government's decision last month to extend planning permissions for schemes due to expire shortly is welcomed. It also said the recently announced reforms to the current Rent Pressure Zone (RPZ) model are a welcome step in the right direction, but, on their own, are unlikely to yield a significant activation in commencements. Today's survey notes that just 895 purpose-built student accommodation bedspaces (PBSA) completed construction last year. This was down from 1,630 bedspaces in 2023 and represents the lowest level since Deloitte's records began in 2016. The delivery of PBSA bedspaces was confined to Cork and Dublin - with 620 at NovelBottle Works at the former Coca-Cola bottle factory on the Carrigrohane Road in Cork and 190 bedspaces at The Residence on Prussia Street in Dublin. The remaining bedspaces were delivered at Blackhall Place in Stoneybatter in Dublin where a refurbishment added an additional 80 beds. The report noted that by the end of the first quarter, 1,400 PBSA bedspaces were under construction across six schemes, compared to 1,160 bedspaces at the same time last year. Construction is spread across Galway, Dublin, Limerick and Kildare. Today's report also shows that completions in the Dublin office market rose last year to 169,500 square metres, a substantial increase on 2023 volumes of 95,400 square metres. But Deloitte said this rise was expected and should not be regarded as an indication of increased construction activity within the sector and reflects the completion of an overhang of stock. The report says that the only delivery expected in 2027 based on current construction statistics is 1 Adelaide Road, which is already pre-let in full. This means 2027 may be the first year since 2015 that no new office space will be delivered in the city, it added. Meanwhie, the volume of new rooms added to the hospitality market declined by 17% last year with just 1,358 new rooms. Some 4,060 rooms were under construction in the first quarter of this year, however, with Dublin absorbing the lion's share. This represents a significant rise on last year's Crane Survey (2,850 rooms) as several large hotels commenced construction, including at Dublin Airport, where 412 rooms are set to be delivered. In total, 1,410 new rooms are due to be added in 2025. A further 2,510 beds are due to be delivered in 2026, with the remaining beds under construction due to be delivered in 2027. Kate English, Chief Economist at Deloitte Ireland, said we are seeing cranes across the skyline, but not enough where they are needed most. "What this research reinforces is that the biggest issue facing Ireland right now isn't demand, it's supply. Whether it's homes, student beds, or affordable units, we're simply not building enough to meet the needs of a growing population and a resilient economy," Ms English said. "A stable policy environment is crucial in Ireland, as inconsistency in housing policy will deter and dampen investor confidence in Ireland. Without stability, capital will be redirected to jurisdictions offering more predictable and investor-friendly environments. This is not a hypothetical risk, it is a market reality," she cautioned.
