‘Not our policy to accept cash in lieu of social housing’

ONLY in exceptional circumstances will cash be accepted from developers in lieu of affordable housing, Kerry County Council insisted yesterday.

It had been claimed that developers in Kerry were getting around planning laws by paying money instead of allocating 20% of new homes for social and affordable housing.

The council, which has more than 1,000 applicants on its housing list, last year negotiated the delivery of only 15 such homes from developers.