PUBLIC EXPENDITURE MINISTER Paschal Donohoe has defended his record on housing delivery despite former housing minister Eoghan Murphy stating in his recent book that he felt “ambushed” by senior government figures who derailed his plans.
In his book, ‘Running from Office’, the former housing minister outlines that he wanted to make substantial changes to Simon Coveney’s housing plans when he took over the office.
Declaring a housing emergency, holding a referendum to enshrine the right to housing in the Constitution and taxing vacant properties were just some of the ideas he said were slapped down.
In his book, Murphy described a “brutal” meeting with former Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, Donohoe (who was finance minister at the time) and the attorney general at the time, Seamus Wolfe, where his ideas were ruled out.
When asked for his reaction to Murphy’s assertions, that his ideas to change housing policy were quietly dropped, Donohoe stood over his record, stating that during his tenure as Minister for Public Expenditure during that period the housing budget increased every year.
“Funding that was available for social and public housing increased every year as well. In every budget that I have done, either as Minister for Finance or as Minister for Public expenditure, I have prioritised additional funding to ensure that new homes are being built,” he said.
However, he added that in his role as minister at the time he needed to ensure that there was also additional funding to deliver “the other projects that government wanted to make happen, to build more schools, to be able to invest more in public transport, to be able to invest more in our justice system”.
“I have to ask questions and I have to ensure that what we are doing overall adds up,” said Donohoe, stating that in his view, his actions have resulted in financial resources being available “in the future, to make the further shift change in the number of new homes that are being built and further invest in our country’s future”.
The Journal put it to Donohoe that this was also a time where homelessness figures began to skyrocket which was one of the reasons Murphy cites in the book as being a reason he wanted to resign from office.
“But this is the reason why, during that period, as well, we increased the investment that was available to try to deal with the risk of homelessness and to rebuild the social housing programme. It’s the reason why, when I engaged with Eoghan, after every budget that we did, we put more money into those areas,” said Donohoe.
Taoiseach Simon Harris added that he finds it “very interesting” some political figures “who spent a number of years excoriating Murphy, are now holding him up as a fountain of all wisdom, which I just think is quite interesting to note”.
Harris added that many people who opposed him in the Dáil every day “in a very personalised fashion, quite a vicious fashion, are now quoting him”.
He said he remains in contact with Murphy describing him as someone he holds in high regard.
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