Some parts of West Kerry have almost as many holiday homes as permanent residences, according to the latest figures from the 2022 Census which also reveal a housing vacancy rate far above the national average in some areas.
Dingle had one of the lowest levels of population increase in West Kerry in the six years between 2016 and 2022, according to the latest Census results, and the reason for the surprisingly slow growth rate appears to be the high cost and lack of availability of family homes in the town. Preliminary Census results released by the Central Statistics Office recorded 1,649 people living in Dingle on Census night in 2022. This was a population increase of just 26 people - or 1.6 per cent – over the six years since the previous Census and it puts Dingle among the slowest growing population centres in Kerry. Dingle isn’t short of houses to accommodate more people, according to the Census which found that there are 1,062 dwellings (houses and apartments) in the town. However, while over 15 per cent of the houses in Dingle are vacant, too few are coming on the market to meet the demand and this is causing prices to rise beyond the reach of local families. Estate agent John Diony O’Connor
It is hoped that a meeting with Justice Minister Helen McEntee will take place in the coming weeks with a rape victim and her family, who are demanding character testimonials be outlawed in sex-crime sentencing.
A similar call has been made by the Kerry Rape and Sexual Abuse Centre in light of the controversy that arose over a number of testimonials offered on her rapist s behalf before his Central Criminal Court sentencing in recent weeks. The victim s family were upset by the testimonials - with her mother warning it was like a second slap in the face for her family.
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