Local authorities across Ireland have delivered just 18% of their targets for directly built social housing between 2022 and 2024, new figures show.
The data, due to be presented to Cabinet by Housing Minister James Browne, reveals a significant shortfall in local authority-led construction, with just over 5,000 social homes built nationally in the past three years, far below the Government’s target of 27,400.
In response, Minister Browne is expected to propose a new “league table” to track and compare local authorities’ social housing delivery performance.
According to the figures, Cork County, Kildare, and Louth local authorities all delivered less than 10% of their direct-build housing targets. Kildare, for example, built just 3% of its target, but managed to exceed its overall social housing goal by 12% through other mechanisms, such as partnerships with Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs) and Part V contributions from developers.
When all forms of social housing delivery are considered, Donegal emerged as the worst performer, delivering just 46%of its overall target. Dublin City Council also underperformed, meeting only 49% of its overall goal and just 11%of its direct-build target.
The findings underline growing concerns about the State's reliance on third-party housing provision and the slow pace of local authority construction during a period of high demand for public housing.
More detailed performance breakdowns by local authority are expected to be released as part of the Cabinet briefing.
