Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien confirmed that the Planning and Development Bill will be approved by the Oireachtas before the season’s legislative recess, come what may. He also affirmed that the financial aid plans for first-time homeowners – the Help to Buy scheme and First Home Scheme – would persist for an additional half-decade.
Addressing a home construction summit at Croke Park, spearheaded by the Irish Home Builders Association, O’Brien informed attendees that an array of initiatives aimed at supporting housing development and helping buyers secure homes would be extended by the government. He revealed securing approval from a housing-focused Cabinet subcommittee to extend the development levy waiver and the refund of the Uisce Éireann connection charge until the year’s end.
The development levies, charged by local authorities on fresh housing projects, were temporarily waived last year but is set to end later this month. It was introduced to encourage new housing projects as the number of commencements has seen a steep increase over the previous 12 months. Leading officials and Ministers view this measure as effective and desire its continuation.
O’Brien will submit a memorandum to the Government next week to prolong the levy waiver and connection charge refund until this year’s end. He also announced the extension of the First Home Scheme for an additional five years and intentions to continue extending the Help to Buy scheme for a similar period.
He stressed the urgent need for the Government’s new Planning and Development Bill, which he regards as the foundation of Irish planning for the upcoming decades.
“It’s crucial that our planning system offers certainty, consistency, and transparency,” explained Mr O’Brien. “A definitive timeframe is required for investors to have their applications processed by An Coimisiún Pleanála smoothly and promptly.
Despite the auto-enrolment pension scheme appearing effective in theory, its practical execution still remains questioned.
Furthermore, it is essential to ensure that constant objections or delays to schemes via judicial review and other procedures no longer persist as they have been. Courtrooms are the least ideal locations for making planning decisions.
The chronic succession of rejections that obstruct schemes, homes, and crucial infrastructure must not become a persistent issue. Regardless of the obstacles, the Planning and Development Bill will be passed in the Oireachtas before the summer recess.
Strategic planning objections seem to be employed more as a strategy rather than for any substantial cause according to Mr. O’Brien, with those filing them fully aware of the “planning clock”.
Usually, planning permission is granted for five years, within which the approved development has to be significantly finished.
He conceded that the government’s housing goals are currently not matching the demand and revealed plans to contact all local governments informing them about the need for further land zoning to support the new housing goals.
The Economic and Social Research Institute will soon be publishing a report updating their housing requirement estimates.”