Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
THIS WEEK WAS a significant one for the Government with the publication of the long-awaited housing plan.
Published on Thursday, the plan sets out the roadmap for housing policy up to 2030, but instead of a total overhaul of how this country approaches the seemingly intractable problem that is housing, we were presented with a plan that is, in the main, a continuation of existing policy.
For a lot of the public, this won’t be seen as positive news, but for Micheál Martin, whose leadership of Fianna Fáil has been called into question in recent weeks, it is an approach that appears to have paid off.
At the outset of the week, Fianna Fáilers continued to privately grumble about the party leadership in the wake of the Jim Gavin election fiasco.
Rumours of a possible heave against Micheál Martin’s leadership have been rife in recent weeks, but so far such an event has failed to materialise.
Speaking to The Journal earlier this week, a number of parliamentary party members said efforts were underway to change the party leadership, but that it was a slow process.
Some said this desire for change was due to frustrations that stretched beyond the handling of the presidential election and included anger over the slow pace of infrastructure delivery since last year’s general election.
One Fianna Fáil TD said the reaction to the housing plan would be a useful barometer of Martin’s popularity in the party, and criticism of it may be used as a method to dent his power.
But so far, despite the internal rumblings of disquiet, parliamentary party members have been steadfast in their support of the plan.
Speaking to The Journal, Catherine Ardagh, Fianna Fáil TD for Dublin South Central, said she believes the plan is “very doable” and that Housing Minister James Browne is doing a “really good job in housing”.
Asked if she shares the concerns of some of her colleagues about the pace of delivery and Micheál Martin’s leadership, Ardagh said she does not.
She said she believes the housing plan is “ambitious” and in her own constituency, she can visualise where it will be able to succeed.
The plan places a significant focus on the idea of “starter homes” for first-time buyers and renters.
When asked at the launch to provide clarity on what exactly a starter home is in terms of price, size or duration of occupation, the Housing Minister, Taoiseach and Tánaiste all failed to provide clarity and simply said ‘starter homes’ are properties that qualify for schemes like First Home and Help to Buy.
Asked about the lack of clarity about what a ‘starter home’ is and if the concept is emblematic of failed Celtic Tiger era housing policy, Ardagh refuted this and said a ‘starter home’ is different for everybody.
She said she believes that people who have been critical of this push around ‘starter homes’ are just looking to “find a flaw”.
“People are like ‘let’s pick holes in it’ and let’s pick holes with the language of ‘starter homes’,” she said.
One of the main criticisms and concerns about the housing plan was the removal of annual housing targets.
Labour’s housing spokesperson Conor Sheehan argued this week that their removal was an effort by the Government to “shield” itself from accountability.
Asked if she has any concerns about this, Ardagh said no and that this is just another area where people are trying to find faults.
“No one will ever go ‘that’s actually a decent plan, let’s all get behind it’, and, you know, not object to houses in our constituencies, or not object, if you’re a member of the public, to development in your area,” Ardagh said.
She added that the target is ultimately 300,000 new homes for the term of government and that people will still be able to monitor progress.
“Journalists will be able to keep a watchful eye every few months on where we’re going, on how many commencements, how many completions.
A similar view was shared by Fianna Fáil junior minister Timmy Dooley, who backed the plan and said: “You can set all the targets you want, but they are no use if you don’t have the tools in place to deliver.”
He argued that if the private market is functioning properly, it will set its own targets.
Elsewhere, Fianna Fáil TD for Cavan-Monaghan Brendan Smith also welcomed the plan and said Government is providing “unprecedented resources”.
“But Government must ensure that all arms of the State work together and ensure that bottlenecks and delays are eliminated and we have the speediest possible delivery of new housing,” he added.
Smith said that across his own two counties, there have been “very substantial” social housing programmes which have been much needed.
He conceded, however, that more needs to be done in terms of affordable housing.
“Far too many people who are working in low-paid jobs are above the income eligibility limits for social housing, and at the same time, they are not in a position to get a mortgage or a loan from a financial institution,” he said.
He said he wants to see a “particular emphasis” placed on that element of the housing plan.
Asked what the mood is in Fianna Fáil following the publication of the housing plan, Dooley said:
“I think what people want to see is delivery, and in fairness, the Taoiseach has been focused on that.”
“He’s pushing ministers every day of the week to deliver,” Dooley said.
Asked if he is satisfied with Martin’s leadership currently, Dooley responded: “Oh, absolutely”.
If the housing plan was an important test of Micheál Martin’s leadership, then for now it looks like he has passed.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
have your say