Rose Conway-Walsh: Housing Crisis Is Hurting Competitiveness

Minister, we're constantly dealing with the growing challenge of improving Ireland's competitiveness, so while our economy on paper seems strong, we are clear on persistent structural weaknesses that are undermining our ability to sustain growth, to attract investment and support our people. Now last September we received the Government's Action Plan on Competitiveness and Productivity, containing 85 actions. So since the publication of this Action Plan, can you report any measurable improvements to our national competitiveness? Minister. Thank you very much Cathaoirleach and I thank the Deputy for her question. The Action Plan on Competitiveness and Productivity was published on the 10th of September 2025. The preparation of this Action Plan was a commitment of the Programme for Government in response to international economic developments, its delivery was expedited. The overarching objective of the Action Plan is to maintain and improve Ireland's position as a competitive and productive economy, capable of withstanding shocks, building on our strengths and developing our indigenous enterprise base while continuing to attract investment and talent from abroad. Ireland holds a strong competitive position globally. This is reflected in our current position as the seventh most competitive country worldwide in the latest IMD World Competitive Rankings 2025. Among the EU Member States, Ireland ranks second. The next update on these rankings is expected to be published in June of this year. I am pleased to report that the implementation of the Action Plan is well underway. Currently the vast majority of the actions are regarded as in progress. There are a number of key actions from the Action Plan which have already been delivered and are also due for completion in the coming months. The next progress update on the implementation of the Action Plan will be discussed as part of the Government's Annual Competitiveness Summit in July 2026, with the first implementation report to be submitted for discussion at the Summit. Monitoring the success of the Action Plan will operate across two distinct but complementary dimensions. The first focuses on practical delivery, tackling the timely effect of implementation of specific actions and commitments right across government. The second assesses strategic impact, evaluating progress toward broader goals of the plan, namely sustained improvements in Ireland's competitiveness and productivity. It should be noted that changes in productivity and competitiveness are typically driven by structural factors and are characterised by lasting improvements in efficiency, capacity and innovation. There will therefore require time and, in that regard, to support the monitoring and oversight in respect of the broader aims of the Action Plan, Government will continue to seek advice from the National Competitive and Productivity Council. Across many metrics, the Government is failing to address the challenges to our competitiveness and what we are hearing back from business. The housing crisis has worsened, with record rents and homelessness at a record high. So what employers are saying to us is, where will our workers live? They have nowhere to live. I'm a member of the Enterprise, Tourism and Employment Committee and we've been dealing extensively with the cost of doing business and we've heard first-hand from various chambers, from ISMI, from the Small Firms Association and many more, that these costs have increased significantly. Infrastructure delivery is slow and insufficient and not in keeping with demand. We have labour shortages in sectors that are crucial to our growth, for example construction. We have unreliable energy sources and grid capacity are stifling. Unreliable energy sources and grid capacity are stifling growth in many areas. But on housing, we must confront the reality of Ireland's housing crisis and our competitiveness has been eroded by a system that cannot provide affordable accommodation for its workforce. Thank you. First of all, I go by evidence and fact. We are the second most competitive economy in the Eurozone, which is a very strong value proposition. Since the report was brought forward in relation to the Action Plan, we've had a number of advances. We've had our Semiconductor Plan, which again is very significantly attracting investment in that space. We had our Action Plan for Market Diversification, which is building on the risks that are there geopolitically, taking advantage of the 41 free trade agreements right across the European Union with 72 countries. We brought forward our Action Plan for Collective Bargaining, which we discussed earlier on and despite your reference about business costs, if you look at the earlier debate, you were looking to bring an abolished sub-minimum rates, which would increase the cost of our small shop by 30% plus. You're looking to bring in additional sick pay. You're looking to bring and refresh the living wage to bring it in more aggressively. All those are costs to business, so I think you should really practice what you preach in that regard. We've also brought forward and working on the timeframe to ensure that we lift the Dublin airport cap. That's another important part for our tourism strategy. And we brought forward our tourism strategy, a new era for Irish tourism, which came in in December as part of the Action Plan. Yes, Minister, and that's why as well that we proposed in our alternative budget that we would have a PRSI rebate for businesses as well to enable them to meet the costs. I know that you wouldn't be suggesting a race to the bottom in relation to workers and work workers' rights. And our motion earlier on was about collective bargaining and the right that workers have in other jurisdictions to access to a union as well. And I know you want good, sustainable jobs, and I am sure that you have looked at the good jobs legislation that my colleague, Keeva Archibald, is bringing forward in the north. Minister, we are facing significant skills and labour shortages in key sectors, including construction, healthcare, technology, and all reporting struggles to recruit and retain workers. And we cannot stand here and ignore what's happened in relation to the metaworkers and the outsourcing company, where jobs are really at risk as well. And I'm asking you specifically, what are you doing in relation to retaining those jobs and supporting those workers? And have you met with those workers? Thank you, Kehira. Well, first of all, I have pointed out how we are improving the competitiveness of the economy, and which is critical to ensure that we keep attracting jobs. We have about 2.83 million people working in our economy right now, which is a record. All 13 sectors of the economy are growing. That's not me. That's the CSO. They're the gold standard. Real wage growth is increasing past inflation last year. That's, again, the CSO. That's the report. It's there for everyone to see. And that shows that there is very strong opportunities within the economy that is growing. And in relation to your colleague in Northern Ireland, they're proposing to ban zero-hour contracts. We've done it. They're proposing to bring in TIPS legislation. We've done it. They're proposing to improve the work-life balance. We've done that already. So a number of initiatives that have been brought forward in your colleague's bill have already been acted on in this state's jurisdiction. And also, we brought forward the Action Plan on Collective Bargaining in advance of, essentially, the target within the EU. And I made the commitment, irrespective of the European Court of Justice case, that I would accelerate it and bring it in. And that's a strong testament to workers right across the economy.