Delivering Ireland’s housing plan

Graham Doyle, Secretary General at Ireland’s Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, discusses the State’s new housing strategy, Delivering Homes, Building Communities, highlighting both significant recent progress and the scale of the challenge that remains.

Doyle says that while momentum in housing delivery is building, meeting Ireland’s growing demand will require sustained collaboration, increased investment, and continued reform across the sector.

At the centre of this effort is the Government’s new housing plan, Delivering Homes, Building Communities, which aims to build 300,000 new homes over its lifetime to 2030. This includes the delivery of 72,000 social homes and the provision of 90,000 affordable housing supports.

According to Doyle, achieving these targets depends not on any single actor, but on a broad coalition of stakeholders. From local authorities and approved housing bodies to planners, developers, and community organisations, he emphasises that “teamwork and collaboration” will be essential to success.

Reflecting on the past five years, Doyle points to an uptick in housing delivery. Since mid-2020, more than 160,000 new homes have been built across the State. In 2025 alone, housing completions reached approximately 36,000 units; a 20 per cent increase on the previous year and the highest level recorded since official data collection began in 2011.

Social housing delivery has also accelerated significantly. Over 52,000 social homes have been added to the national stock since 2020, representing a substantial increase on previous levels. Notably, new-build social housing has reached levels not seen since the 1970s, with nearly 16,000 units delivered across 2023 and 2024.

Doyle also highlights the impact of initiatives aimed at bringing vacant properties back into use. The Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant has proven particularly popular, attracting over 16,000 applications, with more than 12,000 approvals to date. The Secretary General states that this is an important component of increasing supply in a cost-effective way.

In parallel, affordable housing measures are expanding. By the third quarter of 2025, almost 19,000 affordable housing supports had been delivered through a combination of schemes, including local authority programmes, The Land Development Agency, and the First Home Scheme. Nearly 6,000 of these supports were delivered in the first nine months of 2025 alone, representing 93 per cent of that year’s target at that point.

However, Doyle acknowledges that homelessness remains “the single most pressing social issue” facing the state. While increased social housing supply is a critical part of the solution, he outlines additional measures being implemented in 2025, including a €100 million capital fund to acquire second-hand homes for families in emergency accommodation and the expansion of Housing First tenancies.

Beyond delivery figures, Doyle places strong emphasis on the scale of investment required to sustain housing output. The Government’s updated National Development Plan includes more than €100 billion in capital investment over five years, with over €40 billion allocated specifically to housing and related water infrastructure through to 2030.

“This is the largest ever level of state investment in housing,” Doyle says, adding that infrastructure provision, particularly water services, will be key to unlocking development and removing bottlenecks.

Despite this, Doyle stresses that public funding alone will not be sufficient. Ireland is estimated to require approximately €20 billion in development finance annually to meet its housing targets. Securing this level of investment in a competitive global market is a significant challenge, and Doyle confirms that efforts are ongoing to position Ireland as an attractive destination for international capital.

Initiatives such as participation in global property investment events are part of this strategy, allowing the State to engage directly with investors and promote the opportunities within Ireland’s residential development sector.

Domestically, structural reforms are also being introduced to accelerate delivery. The establishment of the Housing Activation Office (HAO) represents what Doyle describes as a “radical step change” in coordinating infrastructure and housing development. Bringing together expertise from across government agencies and utilities, the office is tasked with identifying and resolving barriers to construction on key sites.

Complementing this is the creation of a new senior role focused exclusively on housing activation, designed to ensure a constant focus on turning plans into on-the-ground delivery. Doyle characterises this role as one that asks, on a daily basis, what actions are needed to get construction activity moving across the country.

Further support is being provided through a €1 billion Housing Infrastructure Investment Fund, which can be deployed to address critical gaps in infrastructure funding and unlock stalled developments. Initial projects under this fund are already being assessed, with the intention of accelerating progress on priority sites.

Innovation is another area of focus. Doyle points to ongoing efforts to expand the use of modern methods of construction, which have the potential to improve productivity, reduce costs, and increase overall capacity within the sector. Government support, he says, is aimed at helping builders adopt new technologies and scale up these approaches.

While much of the discussion centres on supply, Doyle reiterates that housing policy must also prioritise people. Supporting vulnerable households, preventing homelessness, and ensuring access to secure and affordable homes remain fundamental objectives.

Looking ahead, Doyle maintains a cautiously optimistic tone. He acknowledges the “significant challenges” that remain but points to the growing momentum within the sector as a reason for confidence.

“There is energy across the system,” he suggests, and harnessing that energy will be key to increasing both the pace and scale of delivery.

Concluding, the Secretary General states that sustained collaboration, continued investment, and a relentless focus on delivery are vital. Only through these combined efforts, he argues, can Ireland meet its housing needs and build communities that are both sustainable and inclusive.