Irish Examiner view: Time to get down to business of government

The new Government certainly has plenty to contend with, such as its relationship with another new administration, that of Donald Trump in the USA, but the challenges do not end there

Taoiseach Micheál Martin receives a standing ovation in the Dáil after his election. Picture: Maxwells

Time will tell whether the chaos that was on show this week in the Dáil will be seen as an inauspicious omen for the new Government.

What is apparent even now, however, is that at a time when public confidence in politicians generally is less than robust, the reputation of public representatives was damaged this week.

The scenes in Leinster House did not convey a sense of legislators eager to work for the public good, even as the threat of Storm Éowyn loomed large. All parties will be keen to project a more businesslike image now that the shouting has subsided and a new administration is in place.

Mícheál Martin returns as Taoiseach, and his own recent career illustrates just how swiftly politics can change — his first term as Taoiseach coincided with the pandemic, complete with social distancing and mask-wearing.

Yesterday saw a more traditional form of promotion to high office, with the new Taoiseach congratulated at Leinster House by family, friends, and well-wishers before making the trip to Áras an Uachtaráin to collect his seal of office from the President.

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Mr Martin’s new Cabinet shows a mix not so much of youth and experience, but experience and more experience, with many well-known faces remaining in office, albeit with some redistribution involved. Is that a reflection of the electorate’s decision to stay with experience at a time of flux, both domestic and international?

The Government certainly has plenty to contend with, such as its relationship with another new administration, that of Donald Trump in the US. This may prove particularly challenging in light of Mr Trump’s fondness for threatening other countries with tariffs, but the challenges do not end there.

The crisis in housing and accommodation continues to contaminate almost every sector of Irish life, and the new Coalition shipped some blows on that score just as the seals of office were allocated, as noted in this newspaper, and below. Such is government: Every day a new challenge.

State failure on housing targets

The size of one of the tasks facing the new Cabinet was made even clearer yesterday when the Central Statistics Office (CSO) released some dispiriting statistics.

We learned from the CSO that 30,330 homes were built in 2024, which represents a decrease of 6.7% on the 2023 figures. Drilling further into the numbers shows that the number of apartments completed last year was 8,763, a decrease of 24% on the previous year’s completions. The number of single dwellings built was 5,367 — 2.2% lower than in 2023.

This is disappointing in itself, revealing as it does the inadequacy of supply in this crucial market. The upward pressure on house prices is driven in part by the sheer lack of options, and this figure helps to explain that lack.

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Last summer, the Economic and Social Research Institute asserted that Ireland would need to build at least 35,000 homes a year to keep up with the growth in population. At that point, the ESRI emphasised that 35,000 was a minimum target, suggesting there were scenarios in which over 50,000 homes a year would be necessary. Yesterday’s news shows that we are well under the minimum figure.

The number of homes delivered is also a blow to the credibility of politicians who have spoken in bullish terms about completions. Simon Harris and Darragh O’Brien, then taoiseach and minister for housing, respectively, are both on the record as claiming that almost 40,000 homes would be completed in 2024. However, the ESRI report shows the Government did not even achieve the figure of 33,000 homes set out in its Housing for All plan.

Everyone is familiar with the scale of the accommodation crisis, but statements such as those from Mr Harris and Mr O’Brien do little to convince the population that the political class has completely grasped the urgency of this crisis.

Heed warnings on Storm Éowyn

There was a good deal of scoffing at a weather warning issued earlier this month by Met Éireann, most of it emanating from parts of the country which were lucky enough to avoid the worst of a sudden cold snap.

People in areas such as North Cork, Clare, Tipperary, Kerry, and Limerick, however, had a very different perspective on the warnings. Dealing with heavy snow and impassable roads brought home to many that such warnings need to be taken extremely seriously.

This should be borne in mind when considering this week’s warning about Storm Éowyn. To be fair, Met Éireann has been unambiguous about the gravity of the situation, flagging an “extraordinary” event and warning of unprecedented wind speeds. This has led to significant decisions — to cancel school and college classes, to shut down public transport, and to encourage people to charge electronic devices and ensure they have necessary supplies in case of power outages or transport issues.

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There will be an appropriate time in the near future to discuss how prepared we are as a society for occurrences such as Storm Éowyn, given the possibility of more extreme weather events as a result of global warming.

For now the traditional advice is as valid as it ever was: Readers should take care to be safe, to check on neighbours — particularly the elderly and the vulnerable — and to avoid unnecessary travel.

That includes any last-second decisions to get in more foodstuffs. Getting to the supermarket to clear the shelves of bread should not be seen as necessary travel.