The Government's five-year housing blueprint has been delayed by at least two months as ministers continue to wrangle over the amount of money that will be allocated to solving the crisis.
As the Irish Examiner reports, it had been promised that the already delayed Housing for All plan would come before Cabinet next week for sign-off.
However, Housing Minister Darragh O'Brien now will not have his finalised proposals ready until late August or possibly September.
Discussions are continuing between a number of Government departments including Finance, Public Expenditure, Higher Education and Housing over the amount allocated and other details of the plan.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin has also postponed a social housing launch in Cork on Friday.
A brief housing update below here. 👇🏻☀️
A lot of work to do over the next few weeks but we are making progress in key areas, in homelessness, in rents & in affordability. pic.twitter.com/4M0qxZyUb9Advertisement— Darragh O'Brien (@DarraghOBrienTD) July 22, 2021
Housing budget
Ministers clashed over the amount to be spent on housing, which resulted in the publication of the summer economic statement being delayed.
Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe and the Taoiseach went toe to toe on the housing budget allocation, with Micheál Martin arguing in favour of increased spending on the area of housing, which was seen as significant.
Reacting, Sinn Féin housing spokesperson Eoin Ó Broin said: “I’m not surprised the minister has missed another key deadline.
“His affordable housing plan promised for September 2020 has not yet been fully announced. Now his entire housing plan is delayed.
He said for all their faults, the last Fine Gael Government produced a housing plan in 100 days while it is taking Fianna Fáil more than a year to produce theirs.
Mr Ó Broin added “The fact that they did not have a plan ready to go last summer speaks volumes about their failure to break free from the shadow of Fine Gael’s failed Rebuilding Ireland housing policy.”
