Government to keep league table on how councils are performing on social housing
Minister for Housing James Browne will bring proposals for regular publication of data on the performance of councils in constructing social housing on local authority land, especially on the delivery of 'own-build' homes.
While almost half of the city and county councils exceeded their Housing for All social housing targets last year, all local authorities performed poorly when it came to the self-build targets.
A total of 5,065 homes were self-built by local authorities between 2022 and 2024, only 18 per cent of the target of 27,400. Two councils, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown and Sligo, reached only 10 per cent of the target while the three worst-performing councils on self-build were Cork County (8 per cent), Louth (4 per cent) and Kildare (three per cent).
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Social homes are delivered in a number of ways under the Housing for All programme: self-build by the council; buying homes in turnkey conditions; acquiring them from non-profit approved housing agencies; or having them transferred from developers under Part V of the Planning Act.
In terms of overall provision, including all modes of delivering social houses, the best performers between 2022 and 2024 were Laois (189 per cent), Meath (169 per cent) and Wicklow (142 per cent). The local authorities with the lowest figures compared to target were Dublin City Council (49 per cent) and Donegal County Council (46 per cent).
Mr Browne is expected to tell ministerial colleagues that releasing the data in this format will make the performances of councils in delivering social homes more transparent and more accountable. It will also be received as a signal to councils with lower delivery to improve their performance.
Mr Browne held a housing summit in early June during which he told local authority chief executives and planners that he wanted a 'serious scaling up' of delivery of social homes.
He also agreed with executives that the existing four-stage process for approval was cumbersome. It is understood he will seek approval from Cabinet to reduce that to a one-step process, which will become operational from September this year.
Standardised designs for new builds are also being mandated and more modern methods of construction will be incorporated. Mr Browne is expected to say that these measures will streamline the process.
The Minister is also seeking approval for a Bill to extend the planning permission time periods for developments delayed by Judicial Review challenges.
Tánaiste Simon Harris will tell Cabinet today that with just a week to go there is positive momentum in EU-US trade talks – but that 10 per cent baseline tariffs in some sectors will pose challenges for the Irish economy and businesses.
Tánaiste Simon Harris is expected to tell the Cabinet meeting that there is a 'growing belief' at European Union level that agreement can be reached on a trade deal with the United States by the July 9th deadline.
He will say that any deal will have to be assessed against what exclusions from the US-imposed 10 per cent tariff can be secured, including scope for zero-for-zero arrangements for key sectors, which Ireland has identified as pharmaceuticals, semiconductors and aviation.
In recent talks with Ambassador Jamieson Greer, Mr Harris raised sectoral tariffs on pharmaceuticals and underlined the interconnected nature of the sector on both sides of the Atlantic.
In a speech to be delivered later today at an event marking exactly one year until Ireland takes up the EU presidency in the second half of 2026, the Tánaiste will say that the ongoing trade talks 'will fundamentally alter the union's relationship with the United States'.
Minister for Higher Education James Lawless will note that construction contracts have been signed for five new buildings in university campuses, worth €380 million and being delivered under public-private partnership contracts.
They will be located at the Waterford and Carlow campuses of South East Technical University, the Galway and Letterkenny campuses of Atlantic Technical University, and the Limerick campus of Technological University of the Shannon .
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Irish Times
5 hours ago
- Irish Times
Letters to the Editor, July 2nd: On overseas voting, AI, and Wimbledon
Sir, – As an Irish citizen living abroad, I am compelled to voice my frustration over the denial of my fundamental right to vote for our president (' Irish presidential election must be the last to exclude voters in North, Dáil hears, ' June 25th). This situation not only undermines my democratic rights but also makes me feel like a second-class citizen. Living outside Ireland, many of us maintain strong ties to our homeland – our family, heritage and interests are intertwined with the future of Ireland. Yet, when it comes to the time to participate in the selection of our president, we are excluded from the process that shapes our nation's future. This exclusion is not just a deficit in democracy but it is a significant gap in the recognition of our diaspora's contributions and voices as citizens. Voting is the cornerstone of democracy. It is not just a right, but a profound responsibility that connects citizens to their government and Ireland regardless of where they reside. The issues that affect Ireland – be it economic policy, social justice, or healthcare – also resonate deeply with us living abroad or in the North. We deserve the opportunity to have our voices heard and influence who gets to represent the entire Irish nation, including our diaspora. READ MORE I urge the Irish Government to plan for the referendum and to reconsider this exclusion and ensure that all Irish citizens, no matter where they reside, have the right to vote in presidential elections. It is time to recognise that our global community has a stake in and will play a huge role in Ireland's future on the world's stage. – Yours, etc, CIARÁN SCALLY, Oakland, California. Value of the Hpat Sir, – The question about the value of the Health Professions Admissions Test or Hpat (' Aptitude test downgraded by medical schools over 'gaming' , '' July 1st) is a timely one, as we are now seeing doctors reach consultant positions who were selected using it as part of their criteria for university entry. I suspect though that the scale of the problem is underestimated by the article. The idea that one cannot prepare for the Hpat is long debunked. Speaking to a parent earlier this week, I was told of an outlay somewhere between ¤4,000-¤5,000 on preparing for it, which had paid off with steady improvement over the last two years in repeated assessments. Almost every medical student now describes similar intense preparations, with demonstrable progress over time. It therefore clearly favours the more affluent student. Courses, online teaching, and subscription phone apps are available. Writing as a medical consultant who has interviewed many hundreds of other doctors for a range of posts, I have seen a plethora of CVs which list Hpat results among other achievements. There seems to be little if any correlation with performance in the job, with individuals in the top few per cent sometimes proving outstanding and other times dropping out of the career altogether. I have rarely heard anyone in the profession defend it as a predictor of performance. The more complex question to consider is of whether it's possible to determine a person's aptitude for medicine. It is such a multifaceted career that almost any type of mindset can find a role. The optimum mentalities required to be a psychiatrist, medical statistician, anaesthesiologist, general practitioner or pathologist must surely differ. Similarly, there are areas that require exceptional manual dexterity and areas that require little, if any. The burden of proof must lie with those who advocate or run this source of extra pressure on students to show its value. An assessment of those who first took the exam in its early years, around 2009-10, could be done now. If it does not show a meaningful benefit to patients or society from selecting medical students in this way, surely it should be dropped? It is costing students, or their parents, millions of euro annually, adding to pressure on young people and limiting access to a profession to the better off. These realities require serious justification. – Yours, etc, BRIAN O'BRIEN, Kinsale, Co Cork. Disadvantaging students Sir, – Am I correct in thinking that an additional 4.500 pupils sat the Leaving Certificate this year? That pupils will be disadvantaged regarding inflated grades attributed to previous years? And now, on top of all of that, the Government has announced that they are increasing the administrative fees from €2,000 up to €3,000? One would be forgiven for thinking that this cohort of students are strongly disliked by our current Government. – Yours, etc, CIARA O'REGAN, Killarney, Co Kerry. Imposter syndrome Sir, – 'I was kind of getting past my imposter syndrome, but it's come charging back now.' This was a comment from multi award-winning author, Donal Ryan, on discovering that he had won the prestigious Orwell Prize for Political Fiction for his novel Heart, Be at Peace. Those words, coming from such a talented and successful author, in an era where entitlement appears to be the order of the day, were admirable and refreshing. It can be somewhat nauseating to listen to people who subtly or vehemently convey to all and sundry the notion that the world continuously revolves around them. Wouldn't the world be a much better place if, like Donal, more of us parked our enlarged egos and sense of entitlement? – Yours, etc, PAT McLOUGHLIN, Co Limerick. Fintan's family and AI connection Sir, – Fintan O'Toole writes eloquently about the 'hallucinations' that AI has produced about his personal life (' I've had more wives than Henry VIII. It's news to me ,' July 1st). Large Language Models (LLMs) compose their 'facts' based on probabilities rather than certainties and there is no second layer of fact-checking that journalists, scientists and others concerned with the truth might expect . However, their onslaught is not inevitable. Reputable sources such as The Irish Times do not need to offer up their texts to AI's relentless harvesters. Technical means exist to block their crawlers or to trap them in an infinite hall of mirrors. Legal means exist to demand compensation or removal of illicitly sourced content. On a personal level, we can remove our data from those platforms that harvest it to produce AI slop engines. The future is what we make it and we do not have to consent to dwell in the afterlife of fact. – Yours, etc, RONAN McHUGH, Copenhagen, Denmark. Sir, – Reading Fintan O'Toole's tale of his algorithmically invented family, I couldn't help but feel left out. As a bald, six-foot former geography teacher with just one wife and no shadowy past, I clearly haven't given artificial intelligence enough material to work with. Still, if it's handing out fictional lives, I wouldn't say no to a brief spell as a jazz pianist or the forgotten third Gallagher brother. – Yours, etc, ENDA CULLEN, Armagh. Ass and car t economics Sir, – Minister for Public Expenditure Jack Chambers has announced that the design of State infrastructure henceforth 'will prioritise cost and efficiency over design standards and aesthetics' as a cost-saving measure. 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I have always received an automated acknowledgement, but never a substantive reply. I will do likewise about today's experience, but like St Paul writing to the Corinthians I am unlikely to get an answer. – Yours, etc, CYRIL McINTYRE, Celbridge, Co Kildare. Irish Rail and bikes Sir, – Why is Irish Rail so bike unfriendly? In the past all trains had a brake or guards' van where bulky items of luggage and parcels, and sometimes even livestock, were carried. Nowadays, it is only the 'mark 4' trains, which only run every second train, on the Cork-Dublin line, which have such vans. The advantage of the guards' van is that the bicycle can be wheeled on to the train and tied to a strap to prevent it from moving. This operation does not require any heavy lifting. The alternative, as provided by Irish Rail on the bulk of its other services, is the provision of two bike spaces located behind the seats in a passenger carriage. 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The modest 1916 exhibition that already exists could be scaled up to tell this vitally important story and attract many additional visitors. Perhaps it could also provide a dedicated 1916 research area. There could be a bright children's section of the library to encourage all young Dubliners to read, study spaces, an array of event and exhibition spaces and even a small theatre like in Dún Laoghaire's Lexicon Library. A new city library in the GPO is an exciting prospect and one that I believe would work well and satisfy many people's concerns. The existing retail premises on the Henry Street side would be retained and the offices vacated by An Post could be repurposed for use by other companies and organisations. Many of the brave men and women who fought in 1916 were teachers, writers, poets and artists and this would be a fitting tribute to their legacy. All around the O'Connell Street area there are vacant commercial properties and we have watched with dismay how long it has taken for the old Clerys and Debenham's buildings to come back into use. We cannot let this happen to the GPO. It must be preserved and protected and its vital role in Ireland's history appreciated. – Yours, etc, MARITA CONLON McKENNA, Dublin.
Irish Times
5 hours ago
- Irish Times
Government ‘pandering to whims of employers' by choosing VAT cut over ending child poverty, Ictu conference told
A decision to cut VAT rates for the hospitality sector rather than use the money to address the issue of child poverty is the latest in a succession of major policy mistakes made by the current Government, delegates to the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (Ictu) biennial conference in Belfast heard on Tuesday. Outlining the details of ICTU's new economic policy, Dr Tom McDonnell of the union-backed Nevin Economic Research Institute said Ireland faced a looming fiscal crisis because the Government has become dependent on windfall corporate taxes receipts to fund day-to-day spending. 'If you have an economy that is in full employment, that has never performed better, you should not be running a deficit,' he said. The impact of the housing crisis on workers was repeatedly highlighted on the first day of the conference, with Mary Fogarty of the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation citing the example of one newly qualified nurse living in Dublin who is paying 77 per cent of her take-home salary on rent. READ MORE There is 'very little prospect of a significant improvement in the housing crisis in the next two years,' said Dr McDonnell. The Government's commitment to cut the VAT back to 9 per cent for the hospitality sector was criticised by a succession of speakers, some of whom pointed to the estimated €770 million cost being almost identical to the likely bill for a proposed second-tier child benefit payment. 'We could be using that money to end child poverty forever,' said Dr McDonnell, 'but we're not going to do that.' The country's largest union, Siptu , said ending 'the scourge' of low wages was key to addressing poverty among families, with the union backing a motion that called for a renewed emphasis on increases to the national minimum wage and proportionately bigger pay increases for the lowest paid employees of private sector firms. 'There is a misconception that low pay is confined to the sectors we would traditionally view to be low paid,' said the union's deputy general secretary, John King, 'but the reality is that two-thirds of low-paid workers work outside of the hospitality, contracting services and retail sectors'. He said manufacturing, transport, private healthcare and 'even the high-income sectors of finance and IT have tens of thousands of low-paid workers' and the Government's response had been to 'pander to the whims of low-paying employers'. The morning session of the conference ended early, meanwhile, after organisers were informed on Friday that Northern Ireland First Minister, Michelle O'Neill would not be attending. Organisers were under the impression Ms O'Neill had had to attend a meeting of the Northern Ireland Executive instead but there was some annoyance when it emerged that meeting had taken place on Monday.
Irish Times
6 hours ago
- Irish Times
Bill to undo convictions for consensual gay sex introduced 32 years after decriminalisation of homosexuality
A Bill to undo historic convictions for consensual gay sex between men has been introduced in the Dáil, more than 30 years after homosexuality was decriminalised. Hundreds of men were convicted since the State's foundation, and the legislation will 'right a wrong, something that should have been delivered many, many years ago', Sinn Féin TD Aengus Ó Snodaigh said as he introduced the Disregard of Historic Offences for Consensual Sexual Activity between Men Bill on Tuesday. The legislation, developed with a number of campaign groups, was cosigned by Opposition parties and Independents. Mr Ó Snodaigh said it was one of 95 recommendations of the report of a working group established in 2021. The State decriminalised gay sex in Ireland 32 years ago but 'it failed to address the legacy of that' to 'ensure that those men who have criminal convictions can disregard that conviction so that it is no longer a weight on their shoulders and a weight on our society'. READ MORE Speaking later outside the Dáil, Mr Ó Snodaigh said the exact number of those convicted under the legislation is not known, but one piece of research showed that in Tullow, Co Carlow in 1970, 12 criminal prosecutions were taken in one month. Labour 's Conor Sheehan said: 'many men live with the trauma inflicted upon them by a society who told them they shouldn't exist'. Despite an apology in 2018, no action was taken to disregard these convictions and many men are living with 'shame and stigma' and a trauma that 'drove many people to their graves. Gay men were driven underground', by the legislation, he said. Urging the Government to support the Bill, Mr Sheehan said he was conscious that he was fortunate enough to be able to live openly as a gay man. Social Democrats TD Pádraig Rice said 'the prosecution and convictions of hundreds of gay men for consensual sex was a gross violation of their human rights and did immeasurable damage. 'These arrests and convictions destroyed lives. The laws also had a negative impact on those who weren't convicted because the threat of prosecution was used to harass people in the community.' [ 10 milestones in Irish gay rights Opens in new window ] He said the arcane laws also had a 'huge impact on the provision of public services, including HIV/Aids prevention'. Mr Rice warned that 'we are running out of time for these men', many of whom were elderly, and they needed immediate action from Government. Green Party leader Roderic O'Gorman said the legislation stated 'whoever shall be convicted of the abominable crime of buggery, committed either with mankind or with any animal, shall be liable to be kept in penal servitude for life'. He said framing homosexuality in legislation from the 1860s showed the 'absolute moral condemnation' for being gay. The same approach is being adopted currently, he said. 'It was adopted in Poland up to the recent change in the general election there. It's adopted in Hungary today. 'We see that same language online and I think that's why it is so important that we are moving to disregard these convictions.' People Before Profit TD Paul Murphy said 'this is not just a matter of righting a historic wrong. It's about sending a message at a time when LGBQ rights are under attack in this country and globally, that love is love and homosexuality is never a crime'. Independent TD Catherine Connolly said some of the legislation went back to the 17th century and had nothing to do with justice or fairness. 'It was homophobia at its worst.'
