Department halts its probe into thousands of unactivated planning permissions 

Then taoiseach Micheál Martin, then tánaiste Leo Varadkar, Environment Minister Eamon Ryan, and Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien TD launching Housing for All in 2021. It has emerged that EY has been paid €2.6m for services related to the strategy since the start of 2022. Picture: Maxwell's

The Department of Housing has declined to press ahead with an investigation of why planning permissions are not being activated at the height of Ireland’s housing emergency.

It has also emerged that the Government has paid consultants EY €2.6m for “data strategy services” relating to the Department of Housing’s marquee Housing for All plan since the beginning of 2022.