The Minister for Housing has said he will revise the Housing for All targets in the new year.

Under the Government's Housing for All plan, the target was 33,000 new homes per year.

However internal department records show, in reality, 42,000 new homes are needed.

The shortfall is caused by "unmet demand" and population growth - and it does not include housing required for almost 70,000 Ukrainian refugees.

The initial figures used to calculate targets were based on 2016 Census data. Speaking on RTÉ's Today with Claire Byrne, Minister Darragh O'Brien said: "I've always said, when we get the Census data - we get the full data in March/April - we will review that and should targets need to be altered or reviewed in it we will do that."

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Mr O'Brien described the targets as "baseline targets" that he hoped to exceed. In a bid to accelerate delivery he will begin rushing the Planning and Development and foreshore (Amendment) Bill 2022 through the Seanad today.

The Bill will deal predominately with reforms of An Bord Pleanála, which has been mired in controversy over alleged conflicts of interest, but it will also give powers to the Minister to rezone public land for social housing.

In a letter to leaders of the Seanad last week, Mr O'Brien sought to fast-track the legislation. He said he did not envisage this emergency power being used frequently, saying "most of it is zoned already". He said he reviewed approval from Government for a €125m fund, to go alongside the legislation, to develop sites.

Meanwhile, asked about tax breaks for developers yesterday Taoiseach Micheál Martin indicated that he was not opposed to the move, saying all proposals are "kept under review".