Plans to reduce one-off housing developments in the countryside are “a poverty trap” for people living in rural Ireland.

On Newstalk Breakfast this morning, planning commentator and columnist Conor Skehan said one-off housing is common across Europe – but in Ireland “we’ve convinced ourselves” it’s wrong.

He was speaking as Government considers new plans to discourage one-off housing in the countryside – including a potential new tax on developers building in rural areas and tax reliefs to make building on previously developed sites more attractive.

The plans, drawn up by the Department of Transport, are aimed at cutting car usage.

'Fraught subject'

Mr Skehan said the plans are unfair on rural people.

“The idea of treating people who live in the country differently to people in urban areas is a very fraught subject,” he said.

“Rural areas, generally, are some of the lowest income groups in the country so in doing this you are placing people into poverty - it’s a poverty trap.

“The reality is we have a very sophisticated planning system in Ireland and this is alarmism at play for people building houses out in the countryside.”

A housing estate under construction. Image: David Creedon / Alamy Stock Photo

Mr Skehan said building one-off housing in the countryside is commonplace across Europe.

“Settling in the countryside is a very normal thing but we’ve managed to convince ourselves in Ireland there’s something wrong with it,” he said.

“I tell students in planning to visit any rural area, anywhere in Europe, and you’ll find there is rural settlements everywhere – it’s what people do.

“There are certainly different costs and issues associated with it, but it’s a completely normal thing to do.”

Planning system

Mr Skehan said the current planning system works fine and should be left as is.

“It allows people to choose where they live,” he said.

“Choice is everything in open democracy but choices should contain costs that reflect the outcome of those choices.

“For instance, one of the things we should be doing is positively incentivising people who choose to live in built-up areas, ideally developers building on brownfield sites should be positively awarded for doing so.

“If I build my house in the middle of the city I’m avoiding the need for new roads, new services, and I should be getting tax cuts and grants for doing that.”

There are 3.2m people living in urban areas in Ireland and 1.8m living in rural areas, according to Census 2022 figures.

Main image: Work beginning on a new site in rural Ireland, County Donegal. Image: Piere Bonbon / Alamy Stock Photo