Housing policies under fire amid Brexit fears

The Government’s housing policies risk failing to cope with the growing likelihood of a no-deal Brexit and must be scrapped immediately in favour of “more dynamic thinking” from officials.

The claim has been made in a report by the Oireachtas housing committee which said existing plans are not “robust” enough and that the Government’s Rebuilding Ireland strategy may need to be replaced.

In recent months, independent expert groups including the Economic Social and Research Institute have warned Brexit will cause chaos to the already over-heating housing sector.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and Housing Minister Eoghan Murphy have repeatedly stressed the country will be able to cope with any increases in housing demand.

However, in a detailed document published yesterday, the housing committee backed the independent advice, saying the Government must re-examine its housing policy due to serious fears it cannot cope with a crisis.

According to the committee report, the increasing dependence on the housing assistance payment scheme — which surged from €390,000 in 2014 to €276m last year, including one landlord who has 241 properties linked to the system — is adding to rental pressure.

In addition, it said the Government’s social housing policy needs to be “reviewed and amended” to take account of a potential 30,000-40,000 job losses in a no deal Brexit.

Really encouraging stats from @CSOIreland today confirming a substantial increase in housing supply with a 25% increase in 2018 compared to 2017. Under the #RebuildingIreland plan more homes were built last year than any other year this decade. pic.twitter.com/vx47yAR5Uh

— Eoghan Murphy (@MurphyEoghan) February 7, 2019

And taking aim at the Government’s Rebuilding Ireland strategy, the report added there are questions over whether it “can remain as the current blueprint for tackling the issues of housing and homelessness”.

“A formal review process should be put in place to ensure that future housing plans are likely to remain relevant, notwithstanding shocks to the sector,” the report said.

"Priority should be given to ensuring the minimum level of disruption to construction material supply chains and cross-border labour."

The housing committee concerns came after the cross-party group heard evidence late last year from a number of independent groups over the potential housing problems a no-deal Brexit could cause Ireland.

Department of Housing principal officer Damian Allen told the committee last autumn there is a genuine homelessness crisis “concern”.

He said: “In relation to homelessness, it is the strong view that significant increases in net migration would present a concern in relation to increased numbers of households having difficulty in accessing affordable accommodation.”

The Construction Industry Federation said yesterday it is certainly worried about “a number areas” in the property market due to the no-deal Brexit risk, in part because of the fears surrounding supply chains for imported materials.

Backing the housing committee report, the organisation said that with just 49 days to go until the EU-UK divorce date, the serious risks posed by Brexit cannot be ignored.