The government's latest attempt to rewrite apartment design standards has drawn an immediate response from developers, housing advocates and opposition politicians, after the state launched its draft planning framework while simultaneously defending its existing guidelines in the High Court.

Housing Minister James Browne launched the public consultation on the Draft National Planning Statement on Planning Design Standards for Apartments 2026, which would replace the controversial apartment guidelines introduced last year.

The draft has set out national standards covering apartment sizes, unit mix, dual-aspect requirements, floor-to-ceiling heights, storage provision, stair and lift core ratios and amenity spaces.

The move comes amid an ongoing legal challenge to the 2025 guidelines, which reduced a number of minimum standards in an effort to improve apartment viability and boost housing delivery.

The government has insisted that the new planning statement is designed to provide greater certainty for the sector and is accompanied by a Strategic Environmental Assessment, addressing one of the key issues raised in the court proceedings.

Launching the consultation, Browne said the proposals are intended to balance quality and delivery and encourage apartment construction.

“The supply of apartments is critical to meeting the needs of our people,” Browne said in a statement.

Planning Minister John Cummins also argued that apartment development costs remained a significant barrier to housing delivery.

“Every effort must be made to further reduce the costs of apartment development if we want to achieve the delivery of 300,000 homes by the end of 2030,” he said in a statement.

Developers have broadly welcomed the consultation, and industry groups have repeatedly argued that escalating construction costs, financing difficulties and planning delays have made many urban apartment projects commercially unviable.

However, Sinn Féin Housing spokesman Eoin Ó Broin launched an immediate attack on the proposals, accusing the government of engaging in a “race to the bottom” on apartment standards.

“Last summer, Minister for Housing James Browne published new apartment design standards. These guidelines were widely criticised for reducing size, space and light requirements as well as community and amenity standards,” Ó Broin said in response.

Meanwhile, Labour Housing spokesman Conor Sheehan called on the government to “go back to the drawing board” and abandon plans to “reduce apartment standards.”

The Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland had previously warned that relaxing apartment standards in pursuit of short-term cost savings could undermine sustainable housing delivery and create long-term problems for residents. The organisation said high-quality design should not be sacrificed in response to viability pressures.

Submissions for the consultation are open until 7 July while the High Court challenge continues in parallel.