A Dail debate on the housing crisis has heard calls for the Government to use public money to build more social and affordable homes.
The Government has opposed the motion put forward by the Social Democrats, aiming to close 'legal loopholes,' which the party says allow investment funds to avoid and reduce the amount of tax they pay.
The proposal also calls for Rent Pressure Zones to be retained, in response to a planned review of the measures.
Taoiseah Micheal Martin has been under pressure since figures at the start of this year pointed to shortfalls in 2023 housing targets.
Pressure from opposition ramped up as the new housing Minister was more than an hour late for the debate. Minister James Browne gave a brief statement to the Dáil in the final 15 minutes of the 90 minute debate. Opposition parties have accused the Government of letting down younger generations of people.
The debate came on the same day the Central Statistics Office released a report detailing a significant rise in the cost of owning a home. Average prices have seen a €200,000 rise in over a decade. The median price last year was 355,000 euro, compared to 155,000 in 2013.
In the 12 months to December 2024, the price of a home rose by 8.7 percent. In the Dublin area, Fingal saw the highest rate of price growth at 10 per cent.
However the border counties of Cavan, Donegal, Leitrim, Sligo and Monaghan saw prices surge by over 14 per cent.
