New guidelines to introduce more flexible rules on one-off rural housing will come before Cabinet on Tuesday.
The Cabinet will hear a comprehensive outline of the plans of Minister for Housing James Browne and Minister of State John Cummins to overhaul guidelines, particularly in relation to local need, which will come under two broad headings of social need and economic need.
The rules will be more stringent closer to cities and towns to prevent urban sprawl, and also in locations considered to be highly sensitive scenic and amenity areas. However, in other high-amenity areas – including coastlines, river valleys and lakesides – that are scenic but don’t have a conservation designation, new houses may be allowed but they will be carefully managed and prioritise people with a local rural housing need.
In Gaeltacht areas, the person must live within 3km of the site and have lived there for 10 years. However, this can be relaxed to five years for people who speak Irish and can show a local need. This is to help protect and support the Irish language in these areas.
RM Block
In rural areas, under social need the person must have strong local ties. They must have lived in the rural area for a long time (up to 10 years, either all at once or over time). The site for the new house should be within 10km of their current residence or place of origin.
Regarding economic need, the new guidelines will give preference to people whose main job depends on living in a rural area (remote working does not qualify) and those who need to live close to their workplace. This includes jobs in farming, the equine sector, forestry, essential services (like local schools), or people starting or running a rural business.
Browne will also seek approval for a protocol to allow survivors of domestic, sexual or gender-based violence to transfer time on the social housing waiting list between different local authorities.
Meanwhile, an anti-poverty initiative within the Taoiseach’s department has reported that the number of children in poverty in Ireland fell from 8.5 per cent to 7.8 per cent between 2024 and 2025.
The Child Poverty and Wellbeing Programme office was set up by former taoiseach Leo Varadkar in spring 2023 to co-ordinate Government efforts to reduce child poverty and foster wellbeing.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin will bring the final progress report of the unit to Cabinet on Tuesday. He will tell colleagues the Government is moving towards a 3 per cent child poverty target by 2030.
He will say increases in thresholds for the Working Family Payment (identified by the ESRI as a strong anti-poverty measure), a 25 per cent increase in the national minimum wage, and an increase in child support payments, have all contributed to the 0.7 per cent year-on-year fall in child poverty rates.
Other factors include the expansion of hot meal programmes in schools, the introduction of a pilot programme to provide meals during school holidays, and more targeted measures to address fuel poverty.
Child poverty is measured as the proportion of all children aged 17 years or younger who live in households with an income below the 60 per cent of median income poverty line.
Minister for Public Expenditure Jack Chambers will outline a new protocol that will require Government departments and State agencies developing big capital projects to explain in detail their benefits to local communities.
Fully explaining the real-life benefits of capital projects like water treatment plants and energy substations earlier in the project life cycle is now considered essential to reducing objections and judicial reviews, he will tell colleagues.
Chambers will tell Cabinet that technical information and key benefits of projects, compiled as part of business case development, are not being clearly communicated to the public.
Minister for Foreign Affairs Helen McEntee has a memo on the EU presidency in advance of the official launch event on Wednesday in Dublin Castle, as well as the College of Commissioners visit to Cork later this week.
Minister for Enterprise Peter Burke will outline the details of an International AI Summit in Dublin on October 14th. More than 1,000 participants are expected to attend, and it is regarded by Government as one of the flagship events of its presidency.
