Kieran O’Donnell TD
Minister for Older People and Housing
As Minister of State for Older People and Housing, I am committed to ensuring our older people can live comfortable and secure lives, with proper care and housing supports in place to do so.
Ireland has the fifth-highest life expectancy in the EU, with the most recent figures from the OECD showing that on average, Irish people are living to 82.6 years of age, compared with a European average of 81.5 years. We are therefore prioritising an ambitious set of proposals to plan for the country’s demographic changes and an older population.
National policy on housing options for older people
One of my first actions upon my appointment as Minister was to establish a working group to develop a new national policy on voluntary housing options for older people to live in their own communities. The group is currently examining flexibility on planning rules to allow for a home to be adapted or extended to include separate self-contained living spaces to meet the needs of older people.
It is also examining increasing investment in age-friendly homes, mandating local authorities to find suitable sites for housing specifically designed for older adults and supporting ABHs (approved housing bodies) to manage and develop senior housing with onsite support and wraparound services.
Ireland has the fifth-highest
life expectancy in the EU.
Voluntary rightsizing to cater for changing needs
Advancement of a broader policy approach on voluntary rightsizing is also being pursued. As people become older, their housing needs may change. We want to ensure suitable accommodation choices are available for those individuals in their own community, if that is their will and preference.
Part of this will also involve asking lenders to look at bridging finance for older people who wish to voluntarily rightsize, where they may not normally be approved for a mortgage but want to buy a more suitable home for their needs before the sale of their existing home has concluded.
The recommendations of the working group will be considered in the context of the forthcoming Housing Plan. Through these measures, we aim to provide older people with greater security, choice and dignity in their housing options.
