"While an element of despair is forgivable, it is imperative that the plan be given a chance to work - not least as it's the only game in town. For it to fall flat again is too horrific to contemplate. It has encouraging elements, including the recognition of the need for increased infrastructure investment to support new developments. If ministers are serious about providing a "clear and robust framework" for construction, all the better."
"The fear is that, for all its stated determination to cut the Gordian knot that strangles planning in this area, the Government is still playing whack-a-mole, with all efforts concentrated on whacking the same mole: under-supply. Worse than that, they keep missing. Of all the problems the Government faces, housing is the one that requires the most holistic approach. The continued resistance to the sort of high-rise developments that provide affordable housing for many first-time buyers in most other European countries is self-destructively perverse."
Four years remain to reach a 2030 target of 300,000 new homes, including 72,000 social units, while construction continues at a sluggish rate. The plan includes commitments to increased infrastructure investment and a clearer regulatory framework for construction. Current policy remains narrowly focused on under-supply and repeatedly fails to deliver. Housing requires a holistic strategy that accepts more high‑rise development to provide affordable options. Fear of repeating past boom‑and‑bust errors and rising migration intensify market pressure. Further layers of bureaucracy and cancelled leadership roles, such as the housing tsar, undermine progress. Many households face a personal housing tragedy.
Read at Irish Independent
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