€100m housing package proposed for budget

A €100m stimulus package that would create construction jobs around the country by building more social housing is being considered for October’s budget.

Brendan Howlin, the public expenditure minister, is considering a proposal to provide a capital allocation to boost local economies and cut the massive waiting list for housing.

A submission was made by Jan O’Sullivan, the housing minister, who is trying to find permanent homes for more than 111,000 families and individuals on the housing list.

It is understood she is seeking €100m which would be used for the construction of new units.

Yesterday she announced that funds of €32m are being released from the department’s existing budget to purchase — rather than build — 260 new social housing units.

About €20m will be provided to local authorities to purchase 131 homes this year.

A further €12.2m will allow the acquisition of 135 properties that will enable people with a disability to live independently in the community. In total, 256 units will be provided, including: 15 in Cork City and six in the County; 27 in Dublin City; six in Limerick City and six in the county; seven in Waterford City and eight in the county; and 13 in Galway.

Bob Jordan of the housing charity Threshold welcomed the announcement and said every additional social house was another family with a long-term home.

However, he said there was still “a long way to go” to meet the needs of the housing waiting list. “We are asking the minister and Government in the forthcoming budget to prioritise providing more capital funding for social housing.”

Ms O’Sullivan accepted the list was growing, because of the recession. But she said: “I am working with my colleagues in cabinet to see if we can increase the amount of capital spending on housing through a stimulus package.”

She said such a stimulus “will obviously not only provide housing but will provide much needed jobs in communities around the country”.

Sinn Féin’s spokesperson on housing, Dessie Ellis, described the 260 units announced yesterday as a drop in the ocean.

“The housing budget is not being boosted, it is being cut left right and centre as housing need grows by the day,” he said.

“There are 111,145 applicants on the housing waiting lists of this state and the housing budget was cut by 15% in 2013. It has been slashed by nearly €1bn since 2008.” He said the announcement that housing would be increased for people with disabilities was “hard to swallow” given that funding for adaptation grants had already been cut by 40% this year.

“Dublin City Council last month had to close their adaptation scheme as they had already run out of the very limited funds provided,” he said.