Limerick Chamber economist warns firms could snub the city over housing crisis

LIMERICK Chamber’s economist has warned that news about shortages of housing in the city can deter future investment - and potentially thousands of jobs.

Sean Golden was speaking to members of Limerick Council on issues around accommodation across the city.

It comes after the largest group in the region surveyed 700 of its members, with a majority saying a housing emergency needs to be declared.

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“In Limerick, we are obsessed with comparing ourselves to Cork and Galway and the rest of it. Limerick competes against Poland and Mexico for all these investment decisions. There’s a huge concern that as soon as the word is out about these issues, it’s going to be very concerning in relation to our investment pipeline going forward.”

Mr Golden said any company investing here look at three things: housing, the energy grid and transport.

“Energy is a huge concern. There’s a couple of firms out there at the moment with funding from their headquarters and they can’t progress with plans because the grid cannot handle the demand for their energy,” he said.

The economist says this has led to staff working remotely across Ireland, as they cannot locate themselves here in the city.
Members agreed with Mr Golden’s assessment, with Independent councillor Maria Donoghue saying she fears a “brain drain” flowing out of Limerick.

“We have around 30,000 students in Limerick. Around 10,000 graduates a year. If we cannot house them, I’m sure that’s a threat to our local economy. Limerick cannot thrive without quality employees.”

Mr Golden said: “If we don’t look after these people, they will leave. It’s a highly agile workforce. We know this from past waves of emigration from the country. It’s a concern for employers at some stage the supply will dry up. It all begins with students making sure they have housing when they come here in the first place.”