A young man in a hurry: Eoghan Murphy

Murphy envisions the state building houses, going high rise within Dublin’s canals and, long-term, discussing how to pay for water infrastructure

Eoghan Murphy, Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government, has had to hit the ground running Picture: Fergal Phillips

Enda Kenny and Michael Noonan have left the stage. This is the era of Leo Varadkar and a government whose leading figures are young, ferociously ambitious and impatient to start delivering. Minister for Housing Eoghan Murphy is of that ilk.

There was some surprise that the 35-year-old Fine Gael TD was handed the housing brief last month. Simon Coveney, his predecessor, was passionate and deeply embedded in the details of his landmark Rebuilding ...