Could amendments to the planning bill provide more affordable homes and increase social housing?
Proposed changes to the planning bill allow builders to continue construction on the 20 per cent of land it will be required to hand over to its local council. The houses will then be sold to the local authority at an agreed price.
The government claims that this proposed amendment to the planning bill is being introduced to streamline the process of providing social housing.
Minister for the Environment Noel Dempsey insists that the changes to the bill will speed up the provision of affordable housing. He says that claims made in a newspaper report about who would foot the bill are false.
SIPTU believes that the amendments are a backdown and will be subject to abuse.
They believe that it will ultimately mean that builders can dictate their own prices on all houses, something the Minister flatly denies.
The Construction Industry Federation (CIF) believes that the amendments will not make any difference to the main problem.
The bill means that all land allotted for social housing will still have to be handed over at what's called the existing use price as opposed to the much more expensive market price.
The Irish Homebuilders Association claims that builders will lose money and have to make up any shortfall by increasing the prices of private houses. Ciaran Ryan, Director of the Irish Builders Association, believes that this part of the bill will do nothing to increase the supply of housing. He says it will restrict the supply of housing to private industry.
The amendment also allows that local authorities could hold onto the land and contract their own builders.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 19 November 1999. The reporter is Colm O'Callaghan.
