Land Development Agency Dail Éireann — 2026-04-23 ============================================================ Neale Richmond (FG), Dublin Rathdown More pertinently and directly to the Deputy's point, on behalf of the Minister, we all know why the LDA was set up and the ambition it has. The Deputy is right that it is really ramping up. We can see that in sod turnings, on one hand, such as in Richmond Village, and in site clearings, such as at the former Central Mental Hospital, or Dundrum Central as we know it, but also, crucially, in people moving into homes, as we see in Shanganagh and Shankill. In terms of affordable purchase homes, LDA-sourced or -built affordable purchase homes are delivered in partnership with local authorities, funded by the Department via the affordable housing fund and sold through the local authority affordable purchase scheme. Under this scheme, newly built homes are made available at a reduced price for first-time and other eligible buyers who cannot afford to purchase these homes at the open market value. These homes are made available at a sale price of at least 15% below comparable housing market prices. Since 2022, the LDA has delivered over 400 affordable purchase homes through partnership arrangements with local authorities, on State lands or sourced through Project Tosaigh. This delivery includes the LDA working in partnership with other bodies, such as at Shanganagh. A total of 597 homes were delivered there, of which 91 were affordable purchase, with the remainder being delivered as 306 cost-rental homes and 200 social homes across 2024 and 2025. In addition, the agency has partnered with Kildare County Council to deliver 66 affordable purchase homes last November at Barracksfield West in Naas. More recently, the LDA has launched Priory Fields in partnership with Fingal County Council, as Deputy Boland will be aware, to deliver the first phase, comprising 36 affordable purchase homes of a total of 345 homes at Hackettstown in Skerries. A further phase of 91 affordable purchase homes is planned, with the remainder being delivered as 117 cost-rental homes and 101 social homes. Furthermore, the expanded role and remit of the Land Development Agency, as outlined in Delivering Homes, Building Communities, will help to further accelerate its delivery of affordable homes. Key measures include the expansion of the LDA’s geographical area of operation, which will enable the agency to partner with more regional-based local authorities and bring forward developments on local authority-owned land. I could not agree more with the Deputy, and I think this matter is going to be a precursor to Deputy Hearne's Topical Issue question to the Minister. Prioritising affordable homes first and foremost should be the aim of the LDA, and I will make sure this point is brought directly to the relevant Ministers. --- Source: Houses of the Oireachtas. Licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). The Official Report is revised after first publication; the fetch timestamp below identifies the version quoted. Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-04-23/debate/main Retrieved: 2026-08-27T06:54:48+00:00 Sitting date: 2026-04-23