New government housing plan ‘simply not enough’
Local councillors have given mixed reactions to the Government’s latest housing announcement with some saying it lacks ambition and substance.
“It’s just a copy and paste of what they had announced the previous year,” said Virginia Councillor T.P. O’Reilly (FG). “It’s simply not enough.” Branding it insufficient for the scale of the crisis, the councillor believes the plans have “no substance”.
The plan 'Building Homes, Delivering Homes, Building Communities 2025-2030' was published last week and is aimed to support the development of 300,000 new homes by 2030 (to see what's in the plan, scroll down).
Cllr O'Reilly is calling for realistic targets to address the housing crisis: “We need the housing… not by 2030, we need it now.”
The Virginia representative emphasises that the upgraded water treatment system in Virginia should trigger an immediate increase in housing development. He views this as essential in addressing the local shortage: “As soon as that is done, there is more capacity for more houses, and we should then immediately increase the level of houses.”
Donogh O’Brien, Managing Director at Galetech Sustainable Living (GSL), agrees infrastructure is the key enabler of housing: “It is good to see large projects like the Virginia and Ballyjamesduff wastewater treatments plants now progressing. These investments will create important additional capacity for the delivery of new housing in County Cavan over the coming years.”
GSL is involved in several development projects throughout the county. Mr O’Brien is hopeful that the National Housing Plan’s focus on funding will instigate growth: “Up to €400 million in equity funding [aimed] to assist small and medium size builders develop sites zoned for residential use or sites with planning permission. This is very important in the context of regional development where access to external equity funding is limited.”
While GSL welcomes the publication of the government’s new housing strategy, “the proof will be in the pudding in terms of the speed and effectiveness of delivery,” says O’Brien.
Independent Ireland Councillor Shane P. O’Reilly misses the focus on trade and apprenticeship in the new plan - a plan he calls a “rehash” of previous documents.
“In Cavan there is a backlog. We need more places for courses and enticement to pick up a trade or come back home.”
He views tradespeople as “essential to growth” and this topic had not been addressed “at all” in the new plan.
Meanwhile, Cllr T.P. O’Reilly is disgruntled by the Government’s response to the county’s own aspirations after dismissing their five year development plan. In what seemed to him like a “box-ticking” exercise, the county council was instructed to zone land - further delaying any improvement: “We haven’t built a house in Virginia in the past years and we are told to zone more land first.”
At the same time, he expressed his frustration at how planning appeals can slow down the delivery of housing by months or even years. “It’s unfortunate to see that appeals are going up, and we very much need houses.”
He finds some appeals are made “simply because the people don’t want the noise or the construction beside them". In recent years, several plans for housing were appealed in Virginia, delaying builds - although many planning refusals in this area were ultimately due to a capacity constraint on the local waste water treatment plant.
The statutory objective for An Coimisiún Pleanála is to try and deal with appeals within 18 weeks, but experience shows it can take longer. Currently the board is reviewing plans for 12 dwellings in Rahardrum – with the appeal filed in August, but the initial plan lodged in December 2024.
Sinn Fein's Damien Brady commented on a recently appealed housing estate in Cootehill simply as being part of the democratic process. Citing the reasons - increased traffic beside the football pitch and footpaths - the Councillor said: “Nobody likes to stand in the way”, but people needed to be heard. He welcomed the final permission to build the houses, “provided the concerns of the appellants were taken on board.”
In order to tackle the housing crisis, Cllr T.P. O’Reilly also called for a change in dealing with the development of social housing.
Under the Planning and Development Act, Part V requires developers to provide 20% of new developments for social and affordable housing or the equivalent value. At least half (10%) of those must be for social housing, while the remainder can be for affordable housing.
Cllr T.P. O'Reilly feels that the State’s reliance on buying units from private developers undermined fairness and public trust.
"Buyers must pay full price while the neighbour receives that same house for free… and that just doesn’t sit well with people.”
The process of allocating council houses to people on the social housing waiting list also needs to be reviewed in his opinion.
He recalled a case where someone refused a house in Bailieborough because they insisted on living in Virginia. Cllr O'Reilly notes a pickiness among some applicants regarding location and size, which he feels contradicts the purpose of social housing. And: “There doesn’t seem to be a want for apartments.”
Practical steps - Smith
Cllr Áine Smith (FF), however, has high hopes for the announced housing reforms. To her the plan is “a practical step focusing on delivering homes where they are needed". She is “delighted” to see her own pressing motions reflected in the new housing plan - like making homeownership more affordable for eligible purchasers by enabling smaller building companies to work the serviced sites at a competitive price.
Another aspect is addressing the income threshold for social housing. Families who now fall between a “rock and a hardplace” will be supported through the reform brought by the housing plan, the west Cavan Councillor is convinced. “For small towns, even building a few units has a huge impact on social infrastructure when it comes to saving a school, retaining a teacher, fielding a football team.”
In her opinion, Cavan County Council is doing well in terms of delivering social houses for the county: “In Belturbet alone, three units were finished, with seven more on the way at the Palais.”
Asked about its role in tackling the housing crisis, a spokesperson for Cavan County Council said that the local authority is managing a number of ongoing developments, such as the estate in Pairc na Téile Bailieborough, or the recently completed St Brigid's Place in Cavan Town.
They emphasised that Cavan County Council is continuing to progress its housing programme to seek to increase housing supply across the county by all methods available to the local authority.
“Between 2022 and 2024, 212 new build units were delivered by Cavan County Council. Forty-seven units have been completed to date in 2025 and a further 25 housing schemes, comprising 387 units, are at various stages of planning, design, and construction.”
The local authority is also making strides in targeting dereliction, currently exploring options for bringing a further 37 derelict properties in Cavan Town back into use.
Building homes, delivering homes, building communities 2025-2030: What's in the plan?
Fianna Fáil TD Brendan Smith has welcomed the new housing plan, which he says aims to cut through bureaucracy and empower the private sector to deliver more homes.
The plan, launched last week by Minister James Browne, seeks to build on the progress made under Housing for All and the 137,000 homes delivered since the start of 2021.
“We have learned from Housing for All, and we are adapting. Despite record investment, the State can only do so much. To deliver more homes at speed the state will do more to empower others, particularly the private sector, to play their part," he said.
“Every part of society has a role in this plan. Government will lead with record investment and strong direction, but success will depend on local authorities the Land Development Agency Approved Housing Bodies and the private sector working together."
Key measures
Supporting People Experiencing Homelessness
1. €100m in 2026 to purchase second-hand homes to support the exit of families from homelessness
2. A new cross-department and cross-agency Child and Family Homelessness Action plan to address homelessness urgently.
3. Increased capital funding for local authorities and AHBs to provide emergency and transitional accommodation
Affordable Homes
1. Teams in all local authorities focusing exclusively on delivering affordable and social housing
2. First Home Scheme expanded to derelict and long-term vacant homes
3. Starter Homes Programme to deliver 15,000 affordable homes annually via The First Home Scheme, the Help to Buy scheme, Vacant Property Refurbishment Grants and Starter Home Purchase Scheme
Infrastructure Delivery
1. €28.2bn funding for housing and related infrastructure
2. Enable Developers to deliver new standalone wastewater treatment plants
Faster Delivery
1. Ready to Build Scheme - Supporting SME builders to build on serviced sites
2. Expansion of the Land Acquisition Fund to €500 to support AHBs and local Authorities provide housing units
3. Modern Methods of Construction for 25% of all new social and affordable homes
4. Support for 3D Volumetric system projects to bolster demand of these units
5. Revamped local authority voids programme to incentivise quicker turnaround of vacant social homes
Accountability in Housing
1. Quarterly data publication on housing stats per local authority
Ending Dereliction
1. New Derelict Property Tax to encourage reuse of empty homes
2. Vacant Property Grant expanded with 'Above the Shop' & Expert Advice supports
3. Living City Initiative extended to 2030 & expanded to Athlone, Drogheda, Dundalk, Letterkeny and Sligo
Planning
1. Housing Activation Unit is operational; 31 meetings to date - identifying blockages and coordinating solutions to deliver housing faster
2. Delivery of more one- and four-bedroom homes across the country
3. Increased support for rightsizing homes
4. €34m for Traveller specific accommodation in 2026
5. Clarity and consistency for rural housing and housing in Gaeltacht
Supporting victims of domestic, sexual & gender-based violence
1. Victims can transfer their time on social housing waiting lists when moving to another local authority ensuring safety doesn't mean starting over
Review of HAP rent limits
€400m Equity Risk Capital Investment
Boosting Apartment Delivery
1. Major measures to cut costs & increase supply, including:
- VAT cut to 9% on apartments
- Tax supports & exemptions for cost rental homes
- New Planning & Design Standards saving up to €160,000 per unit
2. New Rent Framework to boost investment & stability