Following the announcement of Ireland’s €8.65bn Budget 2027 package – comprising €7bn in additional spending and €1.65bn in tax measures – key construction industry representative bodies have issued a mixed response.

While welcoming sustained capital investment under the €275.4bn National Development Plan (NDP), industry leaders from the Construction Industry Federation (CIF), the Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB), and the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland (SCSI) emphasise that converting record funding into completed homes and infrastructure remains the paramount challenge.

Strategic investment in water and transport

The government’s commitment to critical enabling infrastructure received broad endorsement across the sector. Budget 2027 allocates €2.3bn to Uisce Éireann, including €1.5bn in capital funding to progress over 400 water and wastewater projects, alongside major strategic infrastructure such as the Eastern and Midlands Water Supply Project and the Greater Dublin Drainage Scheme.

Transport also secures substantial funding, with €5.5bn for the Department of Transport, €4.2bn under the NDP for DART+, BusConnects, and Cork Area Commuter Rail, and €6bn pledged between 2027 and 2030 to advance MetroLink.

Andrew Brownlee, CEO, CIF, welcomed the continued NDP investment to strengthen national resilience amid economic and geopolitical uncertainty.

He stated: “Water, wastewater, energy and transport infrastructure are critical to unlocking land, enabling development and increasing housing supply at the scale required,” describing the Uisce Éireann funding as “precisely the type of enabling investment required”.

Echoing these views, Joseph Kilroy, Policy and Public Affairs Manager for Ireland at CIOB, noted that high-level transport and utility investment is vital to supporting compact growth and regional connectivity. However, Kilroy cautioned that funding alone is insufficient without expanding capacity within planning and procurement agencies to avoid project delays.

 

Housing package and demand-side critique

In housing, Budget 2027 commits €9.4bn, including €3bn for social housing – targeting 11,250 new-build homes – and over €1bn for starter home and affordability supports. First-time buyers see the Help to Buy scheme limit increased from €30,000 to €35,000. Additionally, the Rent-a-Room relief threshold rises from €14,000 to €16,000, extending to detached auxiliary units, while Renters’ Tax Credits increase by €150 for individuals and €300 for couples.

While the CIF welcomed the Help to Buy expansion as a positive step for homeownership, Brownlee expressed disappointment that VAT reductions were not extended to all apartment typologies, including duplexes.

Both CIOB and SCSI raised concerns regarding an over-reliance on demand-side measures. Kilroy argued that expanding Help to Buy increases purchasing power without tackling underlying supply constraints, urging a stronger focus on land activation and site servicing. Similarly, SCSI president Tomás Kelly noted that while the €5,000 Help to Buy increase assists buyers struggling with deposit requirements, the government missed an opportunity by failing to index support scheme thresholds to construction cost inflation.

Frustration over dereliction and viability measures

The SCSI expressed clear disappointment over the lack of targeted incentives to tackle larger vacant and derelict buildings across the state. While welcoming the introduction of a 7% Derelict Property Tax and a preliminary register set for September 2027, Kelly stressed that existing grant structures fail to bridge the viability gap for complex, large-scale refurbishment projects.

Furthermore, while the SCSI welcomed the reduction in standard Capital Gains Tax (CGT) from 33% to 31%, it strongly criticised the explicit exclusion of development land from this reduction. SCSI also called for an extension of development levy and utility connection charge waivers – which can reduce delivery costs by approximately €17,500 per home in the Greater Dublin Area – to improve financial viability and accelerate approvals through An Coimisiún Pleanála.

Climate policy, skills, and the focus on delivery

On sustainability, Budget 2027 provides over €650m through the SEAI for residential energy retrofits, solar PV, battery grants and a boiler scrappage scheme. However, CIOB raised questions regarding fiscal consistency, criticising the decision to reduce carbon taxes on home heating fuels to 2023 levels and freeze them for the government’s term. CIOB also reiterated calls for VAT reforms that incentivise building renovation over demolition.

To address chronic labour shortages, the budget allocates €150m over three years from the National Training Fund for AI and technology reskilling. CIOB stressed that this must be paired with sustained investment in traditional construction apprenticeships and technical workforce development.

Ultimately, industry consensus highlights that Budget 2027 provides a strong fiscal framework, but success hinges entirely on execution. As CIF’s Brownlee concluded, “The priority from here must be delivery.”