Irish Examiner view: It’s simple, we need more homes

Housing at the PAC

Graham Doyle referred to the impact of covid and the Russian invasion of Ukraine on infrastructure delivery in recent years. Picture: Andrew Matthews/PA Wire

The Oireachtas public accounts committee (PAC) heard yesterday from secretary general of the Department of Housing Graham Doyle and, given the ongoing crisis in housing and accommodation — demand for new homes has more than doubled in the last year — it was hardly surprising that the meeting ranged over several contentious issues.

For instance, it appears completely counterintuitive that €246m of the department’s budget was not spent last year, when the demand for housing was never as great, but Mr Doyle offered an explanation, referring to the shortfall in social housing construction, where 7,433 units were built against a target of 9,000 — a shortfall of 1,567 units.

He also referred to the impact of covid and the Russian invasion of Ukraine on infrastructure delivery in recent years, while uncertainty about costs, supply chain difficulties, and interest rate changes were also having an impact on building.

Mr Doyle was not as expansive on whether he felt the Hap and Ras rental subsidies represent poor value for money, though he did admit that the State would prefer to own homes rather than subsidising rents.

He was not as forthcoming about his own salary either — there were reports earlier this year that Mr Doyle was in a dispute with the Government about a raise in his annual salary of €241,000.

At one level this is all good knockabout political theatre, the kind we expect from the PAC. But salary squabbles and enumerating excuses contribute to a sense of cynicism about the State’s level of commitment to our most pressing social problem. 

The energy expended on defending the department’s record could be used in far more productive ways for the benefit of the country.