So-called affordable housing at O’Devaney Gardens is set to be priced at over €400,000. As well as not actually being affordable, the sensible option would be for the state to build public housing, rather than for it to subsidise private developers, according to Workers’ Party representative Garrett Greene.

Greene said: “It’s difficult to see how €402,125 can be considered affordable housing, especially when that figure is almost ten times more than the average wage of €44,202. A one-bedroom apartment, priced between €257,986 and €320,625, can hardly be considered genuinely affordable either, especially when the lower price is five times more than the average wage.”

“This is all being subsidised by the state, which is a nice way of saying that the state is handing taxpayer money over to private developers. It would make more sense for the state to build public housing, which it could ensure was priced reasonably and with long-term tenure.”

“Public housing would provide working people with affordability and security in the here and now, as well as ensuring that the state possesses housing stock for generations to come. This is how we managed to house people in the past and it is something that we need to return to, instead of continuing to funnel public money into the pockets of the profiteers.”

“At one stage, this site was set to be developed as public housing thanks to the work of the Workers’ Party’s former Dublin City councillor Éilis Ryan, before a deal was done to sell the land off to private developer Bartra. The result of that deal, as we can see now, is less so-called affordable housing, and at prices that really make you question the meaning of that term.”