North county Dublin families left ‘high and dry' must re-apply for mortgages due to infrastructure delays
He spoke to multiple people waiting on their new homes in Knocksedan, Swords, who were told they would be ready to move in by the second quarter of this year.
However, this hasn't been possible due to infrastructure delays.
Residents have reported a 'complete lack of correspondence' from Irish Water in relation to when their homes will be connected to water mains.
'I spoke to a family last week who are now having to reapply for mortgage approval, despite their new home being practically ready,' he said.
'Uisce Éireann has given no indication of when they intend to connect the 40 houses in this development. They're being completely kept in the dark. It's unacceptable.'
Cllr Corkery's pointed to the €2.2bn allocated in Budget 2025 for Irish Water, as well as a government pledge to use the Apple tax windfall on critical infrastructure, questioning what progress is being made with those funds.
'The Tánaiste has made it clear – funding to Uisce Éireann depends on a clear plan to actually deliver the water and wastewater infrastructure we need,' he said.
'We're zoning land, doubling housing targets under the National Planning Framework, and setting up a new Infrastructure Division and Cabinet Committee.
'But unless Irish Water comes to the table with real delivery, families will keep suffering,' he added.
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In another area of Fingal in Rush, dozens of families have found themselves trapped in a housing limbo, caught between development delays and missing utility connections.
The Hayestown development in Rush, which is part of a Government-backed affordable housing scheme, was supposed to welcome homeowners as far back as June last year
Instead, many buyers remain locked out, despite having drawn down mortgages and even enrolled their children in local schools.
In February, just 14 out of 52 homes in the scheme had been handed over.
Cllr Corkery has said that, in light of the revised National Planning Framework, councillors will be tasked with rezoning land for housing.
'I think it's important we have assurances from Irish Water that they'll be able to deliver on their responsibility to connect future housing developments to water/wastewater infrastructure,' he said.
A spokesperson for Irish Water said: 'Uisce Éireann is fully committed to completing connections as efficiently as possible.
'Our Connections team and dedicated field engineers engage extensively with developers to progress the delivery of water and wastewater connection works.
'There are many factors that impact on the delivery of water connections on site, for example the Uisce Éireann quality assurance processes, that reviews on-site pipework, is in place to ensure that works on site are of a required standard to safeguard water quality for homeowners.
'Connections can't be completed until these tests are completed satisfactorily.
'Should any developer have concerns over delivery timelines we would encourage them to engage with Uisce Éireann at 1800 278 278 or with their Uisce Éireann field engineer who will guide the developer through any remaining steps as efficiently as possible,' they added.
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