'Astounding' - Laois representative €15 m bill for OPW homes for Ukrainians
Modular homes in Rathdowney and other locations nearly €200 million overbudget
The final bill to build 45 modular homes for Ukrainians in Laois who have fled Russia's war looks set to come in just short of €15 million, according to a Laois TD who has described a report into the spend as 'astounding'.
Sinn Féin TD and Chair of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), Brian Stanley, revealed the final cost of building the houses after it was highlighted along with other overspending of taxpayers' money in the annual report from the Comptroller and Auditor General (C&AG).
He outlined the findings of C&AG analysis of the rapid build programme that was overseen by the Office of Public Works (OPW).
Pictured: Former Minister at the Office of Public works Patrick O'Donovan with builders on the site of modular homes in Rathdowney in late December 2023.
"And in my home county of Laois, at Rathdowney, we have seen the tiny, 45 square meter units, cost over €345k each. In June the Daft report showed that the average price of a home in Laois is now €263,000. A modular unit with no long-term use identified costs substantially more than the average Laois person's forever-home,” he said.
It took seven months to build the homes which can accommodate 168 people.
The Laois Offaly TD said the Leinster House bike shed and the security hut at the Department of Finance may be the latest examples of “inexplicable use of public monies” in the annual report of 2023 spending.
In April 2022, following the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the ensuing humanitarian crisis, the Government agreed a range of measures to boost the supply of accommodation for refugees arriving from Ukraine.
The programme cost had reached €289.3 million by June of this year for all the houses. The initial projected capital cost of €100 million.
The C&AG report said the delivery of the first 500 units by end February 2023 was considered to be an ambitious, but achievable timeframe at the outset of the programme. However, delivery of 500 units was only achieved in early August 2024 — some 17 months later than planned.
The report also noted that in addition to the delays in delivery, "significant project cost overruns have occurred". The initial projected cost was an estimated €200,000 per residential unit, increasing to an average projected cost per unit of around €436,000 by June 2024 — an increase of almost 120%. The latest total programme cost projections of €289.3 million,
indicate a final projected average cost per unit of around €442,000.