Parties clash on housing in first major TV debate

Good morning and welcome to the fifth day of the 2024 general election campaign.
Last night, housing representatives from six political parties appeared on RTÉ’s Upfront with Katie Hannon programme to outline how they would address the housing and homelessness crisis.
The show heard from members of the public with differing experiences: some were facing extremely uncertain futures and living in homeless accommodation, others got lucky and secured housing through a co-operative or cost-rental scheme. The first question that is often asked after any major campaign debate is: who won? The answer is: it depends.
Much of the debate came down to a few questions, the answers to which will aggravate some voters but intrigue others.
Who would ditch the Help to Buy scheme and the First Homes shared-equity scheme, and who would keep it? Opposition parties want the schemes gone, the Government stands by them.
Do the banks support the Sinn Féin plan where households earning up to €90,000 a year would be eligible to buy affordable homes of around €250k to €300k with the State retaining ownership of the land under certain conditions? Yes, the banks are on board, said Sinn Féin housing spokesman Eoin Ó Broin; not necessarily, said Minister for Housing Darragh O’Brien.
Do the other Opposition parties have credible policies? The Social Democrats want to introduce affordable housing zoning to cap the price at which homes are sold or rented, Labour want save-to-buy and rent-to-buy schemes, People Before Profit want to build housing on a not-for-profit basis.
The testiest exchanges were between Sinn Féin and Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, with the outgoing Government parties rejecting accusations that they were failing or uncaring. In fact, the sniping started before the debate even kicked off, as this piece from Jack Horgan-Jones shows.
It’s too early in the campaign to say for sure which party is cutting through on housing but ultimately voters may find themselves with a simple question: continue with expanded versions of the existing Government flagship schemes, or try something new? Of course, Government formation talks will change the picture again. But still. It’s all to play for.
The early days of the campaign have featured quite a bit of tit-for-tat between the two main parties of Government, Pat Leahy writes in an analysis piece today, as Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael try desperately to differentiate themselves from each other.
The fights escalated on Monday over the Fianna Fáil manifesto and Fine Gael’s continuing Michael O’Leary-induced woes.
Soon after the Fianna Fáil document was published, a statement arrived in from Fine Gael heavily criticising its current partners in Government. “Full of uncosted promises with little substance,” said Helen McEntee, lambasting the “type of back-of-the-matchbox-style politics that really could set Ireland backwards and scupper the economic progress that we have made in recent years”.
At the Fianna Fáil manifesto event, Minister for Finance Jack Chambers launched some thinly disguised attacks where he said Fianna Fáil would not raise VAT on energy and would not host events where there are attacks on public servants, referring to teachers of course.
And what of that Fianna Fáil manifesto? In his analysis piece, Leahy says the manifesto is essentially “a plan for a continuation of the extraordinarily good economic fortune that Ireland has enjoyed since the recovery after the last financial crash”.
The Green Party will unveil its general election manifesto this morning in Dublin, where the party will promise an additional €10bn to “supercharge” the delivery of major public transport projects.
Joining the queue of politicians who want to spend the Apple tax money, the Greens will pledge €7bn of the Apple tax fund and €3bn from other sources to ensure that major transport projects such as Metrolink, Dart+, the Luas extension, and rail projects in Cork, Limerick, Galway and Waterford start construction.
The party will also outline its plans for a new “climate ticket” that will offer further savings to regular commuters as well as taking a number of measures to improve the reliability of bus and rail services. It will also focus on continuing to roll out a new “Local Link” bus route every week in rural Ireland and more late-night and 24/7 services in urban areas.
You can also expect the party to outline its plans to roll out a State-led system of childcare that will guarantee an early years place for every child.
One of the suggestions made in the wake of Sinn Féin’s disappointing performance in this summer’s local elections was that it needed to define exactly what its message of change would look like in practice, potentially through a plan that would outline how its first 100 days in government would pan out. And now, this is what the party is doing.
Jack Horgan-Jones reports that Sinn Féin is promising a mini-budget cutting the Universal Social Charge (USC) within its first 100 days if it enters government. Party leader Mary Lou McDonald said the tax cut, which would remove the USC on the first €45,000 of income for all earners, would cost €1.8 billion.
The party also indicated that it would have a mini budget on childcare, health and housing in its first 100 days in office. Read more about the plan here.
The Labour Party will roll out its finance policy today, and promise voters investment in public services over “irresponsible” tax cuts. The party will pledge to index income tax credits and bands – and social welfare payments too – to an average of inflation and wage growth with further increases to social welfare payments to be agreed in the yearly budget.
Labour will also commit to broadening the tax base with increased taxes on wealth, involving a net wealth tax akin to the Spanish model. The party also says it would change the USC to a “health contribution” that would be ring-fenced for future health spending.
A standing independent commission on taxation and social welfare would be set up to make annual recommendations on the cost of tax expenditures. This body would also examine the sustainability of the tax base, and identify tax loopholes. Follow irishtimes.com for all the updates throughout the day as these campaign events play out.
As mentioned, the Green Party will launch its manifesto and Labour will launch its finance policy. People Before Profile will outline their policies around disability reform. Aontú will outline its immigration policies, while the Social Democrats will unveil the party’s general election campaign in Dublin 2.
The Fine Gael battle bus will roll through Offaly, while Sinn Féin will put forward its proposals to make housing affordable and to bring home ownership “back into reach for working people”. Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin will spend the day canvassing with candidates in Dublin.
The Bar of Ireland will also hold a general election hustings on the topic of justice.
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And here is the latest episode of the Election Daily podcast
The Irish Independent reports that the man arrested on suspicion of murdering Jo Jo Dullard was one of the last people known to have interacted with her before she went missing 29 years ago. The Irish Daily Mirror also reports on the Jo Jo Dullard case. The Irish Daily Star covers Gerard Hutch’s return to Dublin, while the Irish Examiner examines the Fianna Fáil pledge to decriminalise drugs. The Irish Daily Mail examines the Fianna Fáil pledge to increase the State pension to at least €350 a week.
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