Every week in Irish Country Living, we tell people’s stories, and inevitably some stick out in my mind more than others.

So when Jacqueline Hogge and I sat down to plan this year’s Building a Home in rural Ireland series, I asked, “how’s Martin Linnane getting on?” When Jacqueline’s follow-up phone call to Martin revealed “no change”, I have to say, I was shocked.

Martin was profiled this time last year when we first ran the series. He grew up on a farm at Inishroo on the border of Clare and Galway, and his request was simple – to build a home on the family land that he farms as a part-time sheep and suckler farmer.

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Planning permission was sought in 2022 and he was given the green light about a year later but the decision was appealed by Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) on the basis that the house would be “an endangerment to public safety coming on to the road” – and so everything has been in limbo since.

Public safety is paramount of course and road safety cannot be taken for granted, but common sense must also prevail when it comes to public planning.

The private entrance off the main road to Martin’s proposed bungalow is the same one that his parents and brothers use to access the family farm, it is the same entrance Martin himself uses several times a day. In the past, he had to travel 15km to farm the land – the distance even meant he lost livestock during calving season. All the while, Martin and his partner along with their two young children just want to build their forever home on the land.

This country is now so deep in a housing crisis that it feels like we are getting bogged down in the numbers

There has been one development though – his case and that of others – has now garnered Government attention with commitments that the issue will be addressed. As Jacqueline reports on page 10, Taoiseach Micheál Martin recently acknowledged in the Dáil that there has been an “overreach by TII”.

This country is now so deep in a housing crisis that it feels like we are getting bogged down in the numbers. The Government’s housing plan ‘Delivering Homes, Building Communities’ aims to have 300,000 homes built by 2030, as well as 72,000 social and 90,000 affordable units. But these big numbers can only be achieved one house at a time. Martin is one of many who have the plans and funds to drive on and build their own family home – and yet these plans are on hold due to a practice of blanket objections.

If the Government is really serious about ensuring vibrant rural communities, housing has to be not only prioritised but actioned. It needs to stop dragging its feet and update the rural planning guidelines which are now 21 years old. If we want children out playing on GAA pitches and adults being employed in local businesses in rural areas, the families must, in fact, be living in the area.

Martin’s article wraps up our four-week series on Building a Home in rural Ireland, and it has included positive stories. But there is still a lot of progress that needs to be made. I hope next year, when we start planning the series, the question, “how’s Martin Linnane getting on?” will be met with a much more positive reply.