Housing, transport and skills shortages among ‘biggest issues’ for Dublin firms

A lack of affordable housing and poor transport infrastructure are the biggest challenges facing business in the capital, a Dublin Chamber survey has found, with one in four firms also indicating that attracting and retaining talent is the biggest issue they face.

Asked to identify the three biggest challenges, housing was the most widely shared issue (85 per cent) among the respondents followed by transport (53 per cent) and skills shortages (44 per cent).

One in four businesses, meanwhile, said that attracting and retaining talent was the single biggest threat they face this year.

These three main issues “directly impact and perpetuate one another”, Dublin Chamber said in its first quarter business outlook report. “Potential hires are squeezed out of the Greater Dublin Area due to the lack of affordable housing within reasonable commuting distance of office spaces, alongside commuter challenges for those who live further afield and travel to the office.”

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Aebhric McGibney, director of public and international affairs at Dublin Chamber, said that childcare costs are another driving factor cited by firms for the shortage of talent available to them.

“Several firms have also noted that their growth post-Covid is back on track, but during what should be a crucial recovery period, they are saying no to business opportunities, as they simply don’t have the staff needed to deliver the necessary outputs to meet demand,” he said.

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The reports follow the launch of the Government’s new €1 billion housing plan on Tuesday, which aims to cut the cost of building homes, renovate more vacant properties and see a larger number of cost-rental apartments rolled out.

“Dublin Chamber calls on Government to build more houses in the city region and to ensure that a more steady supply of accommodation comes from existing zoned and serviced land,” Mr McGibney said.

Chambers Ireland chief executive Ian Talbot on Tuesday said that Irish firms need the Government’s latest plan to work because the housing crisis is “limiting the growth of business”.

Almost half of Dublin Chamber members, meanwhile, said that improving the supply of housing should be the Coalition’s biggest priority in Budget 2024.

While the capital’s businesses said they face significant challenges this year, 47 per cent said they expect their revenues to increase over the next three months, up from 38 per cent in the second quarter of last year. Just 10 per cent of respondents expect revenues to decline in 2023 while 31 per cent said their revenues will remain unchanged.

A large plurality (40 per cent) of businesses also expect their profits to increase over the next quarter while 17 per cent are anticipating a decrease in profits, “a welcome drop of 13 percentage points” from the third quarter of last year but up 1 per cent from the end of December.