Housing Provision
Dail Éireann — 2026-02-10
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Simon Harris (FG), Wicklow

Here is what we actually did. The Governments I have been part of, first, introduced a higher rate of stamp duty. Second, the Government I led when I was Taoiseach and wrote that letter increased that rate of stamp duty from 10% to 15%. Each year, as a result of taking those measures, the number of homes being acquired has fallen. It fell in 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025, and it is expected to fall in 2026. What I am now telling the House, based on CSO data, not my view of the world, is that we are now seeing these institutional buyers becoming net sellers of homes. They are now selling more homes in Ireland than they are buying. The policy effects, coupled with the planning guidelines, are having an impact. Of course, a Minister for Finance will say they will keep these issues under review because, as the Deputy knows, we review all of these measures each year in the annual budget. We moved from 10% to 15%. I think Deputy Doherty would have advocated for moving to a higher rate than the 10%. That was required and since we made that move, we have seen the positive impact, and we will continue to monitor this very closely. The broader issue in relation to housing, housing supply and this Government's commitment is something I will have to debate when I have more time on the clock.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-02-10/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:36+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-02-10