Fine Gael may seek increase in income thresholds for social housing eligibility

Fine Gael will seek major new interventions in the property market later this year, with the party eyeing an increase in income thresholds for social housing eligibility amid ongoing criticism of the Government’s record on housing.

Sources in the party this week spoke of increasing nervousness over the housing crisis, with one saying failure to address it before the next election would “shred the centre ground of Irish politics”.

Minister for Social Protection Heather Humphreys this week told colleagues in the party that a hike in the income limit for social housing eligibility – something that is determined by her Fianna Fáil Cabinet colleague Darragh O’Brien – should be on the table. A review of social housing eligibility has been completed, and is currently with the Minister.

The idea is understood to enjoy support at senior levels in the party amid concerns that Housing for All, the Government’s flagship housing policy, must deliver in the lifetime of the Coalition.

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“There is a level of worry there that it’s not delivering and something more needs to be done. There needs to be a bit of a willingness to do something radical, and the timeline is very short,” said one TD.

A senior source said that ideas had to be “radical or redundant”.

After the main meeting of the parliamentary party this week, the meeting split into two groups to brainstorm ideas to kick-start the property market, with a paper to be brought to Government for further consideration later this year. Policy suggestions will be put into a report, which will be reviewed by outside experts before going to Government.

Senior party sources suggested there would be an emphasis on housing after the office of Taoiseach changes hands in December.

“What we were doing was saying ‘what can Leo [Varadkar] as an incoming taoiseach, going into a meeting of his fellow party leaders, bring to the table?,” a Minister who attended the meeting said. Another source said there was a belief in the party that housing policy was in the “last-chance saloon”.

“There’s two years left, and there is a big move to get units in the ground before then,” with a belief that some existing policies are “tinkering around the edges”.

The interventions would mark a foray into housing policy by Fine Gael, a department that is controlled by Fianna Fáil, amid concerns that output may drop next year.

Carlow-Kilkenny TD John Paul Phelan argued that planning should be waived on renovating vacant units. There were proposals to consider a €100,000 grant for every vacant property brought back into use, and waiving planning required to bring unused properties back into use, alongside new time-limited tax breaks for housing construction.

The party meeting also heard a suggestion from Minister of State Colm Brophy that the Land Development Agency provide State funding directly to large developers to build significant numbers of homes on sites it controls. There was also a presentation from Minister of State for Housing Peter Burke.

Increasing the size of an extension that can be built without planning permission was also mooted – as was pausing construction on some State schemes so workers could be redeployed to housing schemes amid concerns over severe tightening in the labour market.

Mr Burke said housing was the party’s “number one priority” while in Government, and that the party intended to use “every tool at our disposal to provide sustainable solutions for families”.

“Accelerating LDA delivery and improving viability have been flagged as key measures and we are determined use all available actions to solve the problem,” Mr Burke said.