Housing

Two-thirds of property professionals do not believe government’s housing promises are achievable, a new survey by Mason Hayes & Curran has found. Taoiseach Simon Harris has committed to building 250,000 homes in the next five years, but the findings suggest there are significant concerns w

The Housing Commission has failed to reach a consensus on a proposed referendum on housing, with the issue to be examined further by a new inter-departmental group. Housing minister Darragh O'Brien yesterday published a number of reports prepared by the Housing Commission, which was established in 2

So-called 'sex-for-rent' arrangements should be banned through legislation, the National Women's Council (NWC) has said. A new report published today recommends that landlords engaging in sex-for-rent exploitation should be criminalised, including where they propose such an arrangement and it is ref

The Supreme Court has determined that pursuant to s.50A(9A) of the Planning and Development Act 2000, the occasions on which the High Court can refuse remittal will be “rare and exceptional”. Delivering judgment for the Supreme Court, Ms Justice Aileen Donnelly opined that “the Oir

A local authority refused to assess a Traveller couple as homeless and instead told them to engage in family mediation so they could return to the family home, Community Law & Mediation (CLM) has told the Oireachtas. The community law centre and charity highlighted the case study as it gave evid

New ministerial guidelines aimed at creating more attractive, liveable, well-designed, high-quality urban places have been published. The Sustainable Residential Development and Compact Settlements Guidelines have been issued under section 28 of the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended, mea

The Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission (NIHRC) has issued a legal challenge over the allocation of 'intimidation points' to social housing applicants. The case against the Northern Ireland Housing Executive and the Department for Communities argues that the housing selection scheme, as current

Housing problems made up more than four in 10 cases dealt with by Community Law & Mediation (CLM) last year as the Irish housing and cost-of-living crises intensified. The independent community law centre and charity, located in Dublin and Limerick, assisted nearly 5,000 people last year through

Mercy Law Resource Centre (MLRC) saw a 10 per cent increase in requests for legal assistance and a dramatic 250 per cent increase in clients seeking to access emergency homelessness accommodation last year, according to its latest annual report. The independent law centre, which provides free legal

Landmark new planning legislation will improve access to justice by "switching away from a 'no foal no fee' basis to one where we are going to cover the costs, win or lose", transport minister Eamon Ryan has claimed. Ministers yesterday approved the Planning and Development Bill 2023, which the Depa

The State has become the most important actor in the housing market, but action must be taken to prevent over-reliance on the State and boost private sector involvement, a senior property lawyer at ByrneWallace LLP has said. Michael Walsh, chair of property, made the comments after the firm's Housin

UN experts have called on the Irish government to take urgent steps to ensure access to housing and assistance for victims of trafficking, recognising the trauma endured by victims and ongoing needs for protection. Siobhán Mullally, the special rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially

Victims of domestic violence who cannot return home should be recognised in law as homeless, the Mercy Law Resource Centre (MLRC) has said in a new report. The Social Housing, Domestic Violence and the Public Sector Duty report was launched by Labour leader and legal academic Ivana Bacik at a multid

Draft planning guidelines aimed at creating "more sustainable and compact settlements" have gone out to consultation. The draft Sustainable and Compact Settlements Guidelines for Planning Authorities expand on the National Planning Framework in relation to compact growth and in relation to the creat

Mercy Law Resource Centre (MLRC) will next month host a conference on social housing, domestic violence and the public sector duty. The multi-disciplinary conference in Dublin's Wisdom Centre on Tuesday 5 September, 9.30am–1pm, will see academic and legal experts as well as civil society voice