Department of Public Expenditure and Reform document shows hundreds of millions of euros left unspent as housing crisis deepens
The Minister for Housing must explain why he failed to spend nearly €1 billion of the capital allocation for housing in 2022, according to Social Democrats TD Cian O’Callaghan.
Deputy O’Callaghan, who is the party’s spokesperson on Housing, said:
“A briefing document produced for incoming Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Paschal Donohoe, showing nearly €1bn of capital underspend, is a shocking indictment of this Government’s record on housing.
“It beggars belief that the Minister for Housing could fail to spend nearly €1 billion of his capital allocation for housing while he continues to miss his targets for social and affordable homes. This is a slap in the face for the thousands of people living in emergency homeless accommodation and the tens of thousands of people struggling to pay unaffordable rents.
“While homelessness has reached record levels, the briefing document states that the Government missed its social housing target by 2,500 homes in 2022. The DEPR document also sets out the stark reality of the Government’s failure to deliver affordable housing, with less than 1,000 of the promised 4,100 affordable homes expected to have been completed in 2022.
“In the midst of a housing disaster, where homelessness, house prices and rents are all at record levels, it’s hard to grasp how the Minister for Housing can leave so much money unspent at the end of the year.
“The Minister needs to explain why his department is leaving hundreds of millions unspent while continually missing targets for the delivery of social and affordable housing.”
January 23, 2023