Ritchie welcomes executive agreement on housing

Social Development Minister Margaret Ritchie MLA today welcomed the Executive’s agreement to her proposal to establish a taskforce on affordable housing.

The taskforce, comprising officials from key government departments will consider the recommendations of the review into affordable housing carried out by Sir John Semple.

In addition to Social Development, the other Departments involved will be Regional Development, Environment, Finance and Personnel, Employment and Learning and the Office of First Minister and Deputy First Minister.

The Minister said: “Delivering affordable housing is top of my priorities and this agreement is an important first step in this process.

“I want to be able to help those people, many of them young couples, who cannot afford to buy a house due to the unprecedented increases in house prices or who are on waiting lists for social housing. There are many recommendations in the Semple Report which could make a real difference and which we need to take forward.

“I envisage that the group, which I will chair, will consider the Semple recommendations in greater detail and focus early attention on those which can be taken forward as soon as possible. I want to make progress as quickly as we can – with all departments working together.

“Action is required urgently and I want to move quickly to establish the group so that we can get down to work.

“I do not pretend that making houses more affordable will be easy. In fact it’s a massive challenge and progress will not come overnight. It will take determined and coordinated action – and proper funding - but by working together there is a lot we can do.”

NOTES TO EDITORS:

Media enquiries to DSD Information Office on 028 90829490.