Debate contribution: Programme for Government: Social Homes
Debate contribution by Mr Gordon Lyons on .
- MLA
- Mr Gordon Lyons
- Party at the time
- Democratic Unionist Party
- Date
- 8 September 2026
- Type
- Debate contribution (made as a minister)
- Business
- Oral Answers to Questions
- Heading
- Programme for Government: Social Homes
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 5673999
Read the official Assembly record
Text
The Member is absolutely right: it does not meet the need that is there. We have 5,000 social homes under construction right now. South Down is very similar to East Antrim in that regard. I would like to see far more social homes being built in my constituency as well, but we are building what we can with what we have. We saw a 17% increase last year in the number of homes built compared with the number built the year before. I want to have more money. I want to make sure that we can build more social homes. I have requested that money from the Executive, but Executive colleagues have not given me the budget cover to build those homes. She shakes her head, but that is the truth. Homes are built with money. I need to get money from the Minister of Finance and the First Minister. I put a paper to the Executive, and it stated, "We have a commitment in the Programme for Government. This is how many homes we need to build. Are you prepared to fund them?", but it has not even got on to the Executive agenda. I am committed to doing my part in the absence of proper funding from the Executive, and I have taken other steps. I have made it cheaper to build social homes and made sure that we review the design guide. I am looking at how we can use public-sector land as well, and I will continue to do that, but it comes down to money. I am spending the money that we have better, but we need to do more.
275 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.
Assessment
Awaiting analysis
This record has not been analysed yet. It is not counted in any total until it has been assessed.
Disagree with this assessment?
Classifications can be challenged. A person reviews every challenge, and any change is recorded publicly above with its reason.