Fianna Fáil set to take housing in Cabinet reshuffle
Coveney will keep Foreign Affairs ministry to tackle Brexit and UN
FIANNA Fáil is set to take charge of the housing crisis if a new government is elected this weekend.
The party has been pushing for the housing portfolio during negotiations with Fine Gael and the Greens, and is expected to land the controversial department if a deal is done.
The new Fianna Fáil housing minister will oversee a 50,000 social housing construction programme along with a major affordable housing scheme to allow first-time buyers get on the property ladder.
It is also understood negotiations are ongoing over which party should take control of the Department of Health.
“You couldn’t have another Fine Gael housing minister but you could leave them in health with the pandemic still being an issue,” a Fianna Fáil source said.
Over the last five years, Fianna Fáil has been extremely critical of Fine Gael’s approach to the housing crisis. It is planning a major shake-up of the State’s approach to building new homes.
However, a Fine Gael source warned Fianna Fáil is going to have a “horrid time” in the Department of Housing.
The source said the Programme for Government was “written by Fine Gael and wrapped in wool that allows Fianna Fáil and the Greens tout wins that are completely unrealistic”.
Meanwhile, Simon Coveney is expected to remain as Foreign Affairs Minister and will focus on Brexit negotiations as well as Ireland’s term on the UN Security Council.
Yesterday, Fianna Fáil TD Jim O’Callaghan, who has been tipped for the Attorney General’s Office, backed a call for a minister to be appointed to tackle domestic violence.
Mr O’Callaghan’s remarks came as the Dáil debated what is believed to be a surge in domestic violence during the coronavirus lockdown.
He said it must be a “nightmare” for a woman to find herself in an abusive or violent relationship and this was made worse by the restrictions introduced due to the pandemic.
He added that the State has not responded adequately to the issue and the proposed programme for government recognises that there is an “epidemic” of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence.
Separately, the Green Party are seeking a stand-alone Climate Action Department which would oversee the Government’s plans to reduce carbon emissions by 7pc a year over the next 10 years.
Meanwhile, a Green Party source said several constituency organisations had reported back to headquarters that support for the deal is as high as 70pc in some areas.
It comes after a poll of the 185 members of the party’s youth wing, the Young Greens, showed almost 66pc were against the deal.
However, a senior Green Party figure said this was a good result for the party as he
expected far more people in the youth organisation to vote against the deal.
“I’m actually heartened 33pc are for it,” the source said before adding they thought it was going to be 90pc voting against.
Despite fears over the impact of the youth membership on the final vote, it has emerged there are just over 600 members of the party who are aged between 16 and 30 years old.
However, there are internal concerns in the Greens over the impact their Northern Ireland membership will have on the final vote.
The Greens’ leader in the North, Clare Bailey, has called for a no vote and has been supported by the vast majority of her elected representatives.