Record number of houses and apartments built last year

The number of houses and apartments built last year reached a record level for the ninth year in a row, according to official figures to be published today.

However, the increase in construction has done little to tackle housing waiting lists, with around 48,000 households, or 109,000 individuals, still seeking local authority housing.

The Annual Housing Statistics Bulletin for 2002 will show that 57,600 housing units were built last year, a 10 per cent rise, which represents a ninth successive yearly increase.

The Minister for Housing and Urban Renewal, Mr Noel Ahern, yesterday said the increase was "incredible", but conceded it would take another 10 years of building at the same rate to make major inroads into waiting lists.

"If an expert had predicted that 10 or 15 years ago that there would be this level of output, they'd have said it would solve all our problems," Mr Ahern told The Irish Times.

Over one-third of the houses, or 20,500, were built in the greater Dublin area, which represents a 25 per cent increase over the previous year.

The figures also show that 12,500 housing units were built for households on local authority waiting lists, the highest level of output in 16 years.

Separate figures show that numbers on housing waiting lists still remain high. Of the 48,000 households waiting for accommodation, one-third are single people and another third lone parents.

Mr Ahern said the Government was examining options aimed at bringing down the cost of housing. These include a referendum on property rights, enhanced compulsory purchase orders for land and a "use-it-or-lose-it" clause which would prevent developers hoarding land.

He described as "unacceptable" evidence that a small number of developers were buying up large tracts of land 50 to 70 miles outside Dublin.

The Minister also said he was "greatly concerned" at the numbers of homeless, but said the majority were in B&B-style accommodation.

He claimed that while State figures suggest there are around 3,000 people homeless, only around 140 were sleeping rough on the streets of Dublin each night.

He said the Government spent a record €50 million on accommodation for homeless people last year.

"People have complex needs and the problem isn't just about putting roofs over people's heads.

"We need the housing, environment and health sectors working together to meet their needs."