I propose to take Questions Nos. 683 and 684 together.
The new housing plan, Delivering Homes, Building Communities, reinforces and expands the range of existing affordable housing measures being implemented by the Government. In particular, a new Starter Homes Programme aims to deliver an average of 15,000 affordable housing supports annually to 2030. To underpin the delivery of the Starter Homes Programme, the Government is investing an unprecedented level of funding by way of a package of exchequer funded affordability measures, investment through the Land Development Agency and lending by the Housing Finance Agency.
The expanded delivery under the new housing plan will build upon the significant progress already made under our previous plan, Housing for All, with over 22,000 affordable housing supports having been delivered to the end of 2025, including over 1,000 supports in Wicklow and over 410 in Wexford.
My Department publishes comprehensive programme-level statistics on a quarterly basis, including Starter Home delivery activity by local authority and delivery partners, for each local authority area including Wicklow and Wexford. Data from 2022 to the end of 2025 is currently published on the statistics page of my Department’s website. Data is not currently collated or filtered by local electoral area: www.gov.ie/en/department-of-housing-local-government-and-heritage/collections/overall-social-and-affordable-housing-provision/.
To date, my Department has not received any applications or plans for new starter home delivery in the local areas of Arklow, Kilmuckridge, Ferns or Bunclody. In order to further drive the required delivery of Starter Homes under the new plan, local authorities, including Wicklow and Wexford County Councils, will shortly commence the preparation of new Housing Delivery Action Plans (HDAPs), for review by my Department, setting out how the Starter Homes Programme will be implemented within their area. These HDAPs, replacing those previously drawn up under Housing for All, will be informed by affordable housing need within the local authority area and will involve collaboration with the delivery partners, including the Land Development Agency, the Approved Housing Bodies and the wider development sector, as applicable.
