The Irish Times view on housing completions: one bite at a time

The latest figures for housing completions showing a 10 per cent increase on this time last year are good news for the Government, whose efforts to address the housing shortage appeared to have stalled. The last budget was notable for the lack of any eye-catching initiatives on housing, with the focus firmly on the cost of living.

That said, there were significant sums allocated to existing social housing and starter homes programmes. But there has been little in the way of policy announcements since.

Just a few relatively small changes, including ending the purchase of new homes for social housing. The diary looks pretty empty in this regard, with the next big set-piece being the annual report on progress made under the current housing plan, Delivering Homes, Building Communities.

This would suggest that the Government has adopted an increasingly incrementalist approach both to the problem and to the optics surrounding…