Victor Boyhan urges national housing plan after guillotined debate
Victor Boyhan spoke during a debate on the Housing and Planning Bill 2025, warning that the housing outlook is bleak and urging the government to publish a national coordinated housing policy. He cited the ESRI's assessment that no significant increase in housing delivery is expected for 2025 to 2026 and that the government is forecast to deliver '33 units this year and 37,000 units in 2026', below the stated targets.
Guillotined debate
He said last night's debate was guillotined, so the House did not have a full debate and the legislation is going to the Dáil today; he placed that fact on the record.
ESRI forecast and delivery shortfall
Boyhan summarised officials from the ESRI telling the Oireachtas Budgetary Oversight Committee that they expect no significant increase in housing delivery for 2025 to 2026 and that the government is expected to miss its housing targets in both years. He noted the ESRI also flagged labour-force issues as part of the shortfall.
Assessment of the government's approach
He described the government's response to housing as piecemeal and warned that the country faces a national problem, stressing the need for a coordinated response rather than fragmented measures.
Call for national coordinated housing policy
Boyhan called on the government to print and publish a new national coordinated housing policy without delay so it can deliver the homes people are crying out for.
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Senator Boyhan. Thank you, Mr. Herlich, and Senator and leader. Last night we had a very robust but good debate in relation to the housing and planning Bill 2025. I suppose it occurred to me as I left that the government was guillotined that debate, so we did not have a full debate, so the legislation that is going to the Dáil today will have The deputies were asking today what was going on, it was guillotined, so that's on the record and I think it's important that we make that very clear. So what I want to say today is that the headlines of much of the media this morning is that housing outlook is bleak. It's bleak, says the ESRI. So the ESRI expects no significant increase in housing delivery for 2025 to 2026. It's officials from the ESRI told the Oireachtas Budgetary Oversight Committee this week that the ESRI expects no significant increase in housing delivery in 2025 to 2026. The ESRI expects the government to miss its housing targets in both years. They go on to say it is currently forecast the government is currently forecast to deliver 33 units this year and 37,000 units in 2026, well below the government target of 41,000 and 46,000 respectively. So the ESRI have also flagged the issue around labour force and issues like that. So look, we have a problem, we have a national problem. And what occurred to me as I drove home last night having listened to our debate and engaged with the minister and other members in this house was the piecemeal nature of government in dealing with the housing. And I again call, well, this government is now well established and there's continuity because some form of shape has been in government for so long, we need the government to publish the national housing, what is the new national housing policy. And we can't keep putting it off. So that's my call here today that the government print and publish their national coordinated housing policy to deliver on the much needed homes that people in this country are simply crying out for. Thank you.
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