Government to ban council purchases of turnkey homes for social housing after 2027

James Browne, the minister for housing, is set to present a proposal that obliges local authorities to stop purchasing "turnkey" homes for social housing, with a final application deadline of 31 December 2027 and the rule coming into force at the end of the following year. The change is intended to redirect resources toward constructing new social homes through own-build schemes run by councils, housing bodies and the Land Development Agency, rather than buying completed units that may otherwise be available to private buyers.

Browne has criticised one outlet reliance on such purchases for limiting market choice and for giving the state little influence over unit design. In the same Cabinet meeting, a planned apology over investigative failures in the 1983 IRA killing of prison officer Brian Stack will be briefed, and a political declaration on technology supply-chain resilience, dubbed Pax Scilica, will be considered. Additional items include a disability-focused work and skills week and a virtual reconstruction project of the historic Public Records Office led by Trinity College Dublin.