Eamon Ryan accused of ‘jumping the gun’ over Cathal Brugha Barracks

The chairman of the Oireachtas defence committee has said comments on the future of Cathal Brugha Barracks by Green Party leader Eamon Ryan are "one-dimensional" and "jumping the gun".

A row within the Coalition over the comments and the future of the barracks, looks set to deepen with the chairman, Fine Gael's Charlie Flanagan, saying the prospect of closure will be discussed by the committee.

Mr Flanagan said comments last week by Mr Ryan, who outlined how the site was being considered for housing development, were “extraordinary”.

“Members of the defence committee have been in touch with me, and the future of Cathal Brugha Barracks will be discussed at a meeting,” Mr Flanagan said. “It seems extraordinary that a Minister would make an announcement about a working barracks without any consideration for those working there.”

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In a video posted on Twitter last week, Mr Ryan said a new new barracks would be provided for the Army, but that the Rathmines site "is needed for housing".

Mr Ryan said last week the site would be considered for a cost-rental project - whereby apartments are developed and let to tenants at a subsidised cost which discounts them relative to market rents and is focused on recovering the costs of construction rather than seeking a profit.

‘A living city’

“We can’t have a situation where Dublin 2, 4, 6 or 8 are only affordable to people working in software companies, or finance, or tech,” Mr Ryan said. “It has to be for everyone, creates a really good sense of community, a living city and town, and that’s why that land is needed for housing.”

However, Mr Flanagan said he was “disappointed to see Eamon Ryan jumping the gun in terms of plans and preparations” and he said there was a “very good reason for an operational military installation to be kept in close proximity to the city centres.”

He noted number of military barracks in Dublin have closed or relocated in recent years.

A spokesman for Mr Ryan said yesterday that no decisions had been taken on the future of the site and that a feasibility study was all that had currently been approved. The spokesman said Mr Ryan had not tried to give the impression a final decision had been made – but he reiterated that a shift could be good for both the Defence Forces and for housing in the city.

“It would give our Defence Forces the opportunity to operate from a larger and better-equipped site outside the city centre, while allowing up to 1,000 low-cost social and affordable homes to be built in a location which is within walking distance of thousands of workplaces and schools and which has significant transport links,” the spokesman said.

Mr Flanagan said the committee would seek the views of the Defence Forces, their representative organisations and Minister for Defence Simon Coveney.