115. Deputy Réada Cronin asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the measures he is taking to address the increasing number of people presenting to Kildare County Council as homeless following the introduction of the Residential Tenancies Act 2026 [46371/26]

Supporting individuals and families experiencing or at risk of experiencing homelessness is a priority for my Department and Government.

The Residential Tenancies (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2026 which came into effect on 1 March 2026, provides the strongest tenancy protections in the history of the State. The new Act introduced a new national rent control for all tenancies, which limits rent increases to inflation as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) up to a maximum of 2%. For new build apartments and student-specific accommodation, however, rent increases are capped at the level of inflation (CPI) only. These changes were introduced to promote greater investment in the rental market and to increase the supply of rental properties. The Act also provides significant improvements in security of tenure for renters. The latest data published by the Residential Tenancies Board on 14 May 2026 shows that the number of registered landlords and tenancies have increased, both on a quarterly and yearly basis.

Increased supply is key to addressing homelessness, meeting need, and addressing the challenges in the housing market. A record level of investment is being provided for the delivery of housing in 2026, with €5.2bn in Exchequer capital funding complemented by investment through the Land Development Agency (LDA) and lending from the Housing Finance Agency (HFA), bringing the total capital funding for housing in 2026 to over €9 billion.

The new Housing Plan aims to deliver 300,000 new homes in the period to 2030, including 72,000 social homes and 90,000 starter home supports. The Government is targeting a delivery of more than 300,000 new homes over the next six years, an average of c. 50,000 per annum, with annual targets increasing incrementally to exceed 60,000 by end 2030/31. This means 12,000 new social homes will be delivered on average each year to the end of 2030.

Our Plan recognises that homelessness is the single most pressing social issue that we face and introduces a number of key measures to address homelessness. Ensuring the implementation of these measures will be a priority for me in 2026.

Meeting the Government commitment to eradicate homelessness requires a whole-of Government response. The National Homeless Action Committee (NHAC), which I chair, supports the coordination of the response by Government, local authorities, and their service delivery partners. The most recent meeting of NHAC took place on Wednesday 10 June 2026. I will continue to work with the Committee to ensure that a renewed emphasis is brought to collaborating across Government to implement actions in the new Housing Plan.

Prevention of homelessness in the first instance is an absolute priority. There are many prevention initiatives already underway in my own Department and across Government. This includes the provision of social and affordable housing, HAP and homeless HAP, and our strong tenancy protection legislation.

In order to ensure a fully aligned all-of-Government approach under the Plan, the Programme for Government includes a commitment to a holistic, cross departmental approach to homelessness prevention. Work has commenced on developing a national Homelessness Prevention Framework to ensure all possible measures are being taken across Government to prevent homelessness. It is intended that this Framework will be in place later on in the year.

Addressing family homelessness is another key priority for my Department and Government. Under the new housing plan, we are developing a dedicated Child and Family Homelessness Action Plan. This will bring together key stakeholders to drive the continued focus on preventing children and families entering emergency accommodation, providing enhanced supports for children experiencing homelessness, as well as measures to accelerate exits and reduce the time spent by children and their families in homeless emergency accommodation. Consultations with key stakeholders took place in Q1 2026 and the plan is being finalised at this time. It is anticipated that the Child and Family Homelessness Action Plan will be published by end of Q2 2026.

Continued investment in the social housing programme is central to providing a supply of homes suitable to allocate to households on the social housing list, including homeless families. €2.9bn of the capital funding for housing in 2026 has been allocated to support the delivery of social homes. In the short-term I am also ensuring that our second-hand acquisition programme is targeted at increasing more exits from homeless emergency accommodation. In February, I announced that we are making €373 million available to be drawn down by local authorities and Approved Housing Bodies under the 2026 Second-Hand Social Housing Acquisitions Programme. This includes ring-fenced funding of €150m for acquisitions to support households, particularly households with children and Housing First clients, to exit homelessness.