Ó Broin and O’Brien for TV faceoff

HOUSING Minister Darragh O’Brien will go head-to-head with his Sinn Féin rival Eoin Ó Broin in another TV debate this week on the subject that is set to dominate the next general election.

Crucially, a previous TV debate on RTE was adjudged to have been won by Minister O’Brien.

Virgin Media’s Tonight Show host Claire Brock will moderate this housing debate between the minister and his main opposition rival.

It promises to be a fascinating showdown, not least because many believe Mr O’Brien’s Fianna Fáil and Mr Ó Broin’s Sinn Féin could form a coalition after the next election.

But deep divisions remain between the two parties on how to solve what President Michael D. Higgins earlier this year described as the housing ‘disaster’.

The TV debate – which airs on Tuesday from 10.30pm – will be held in the context of the Government failing to meet targets set by their Housing for All policy.

Housing completions are expected to reach between 27,000 and 28,000 this year. However, the Government had hoped to reach a target of 33,000 homes being built by the end of its term in office.