Over in Brussels, our newly elected MEP Aodhán Ó’Riordáin has worked tirelessly to achieve the establishment of a European Commissioner for Housing, which we are delighted to see is a portfolio now placed in the hands of the Socialists & Democrats – our own grouping. Ireland is lucky to once again have a place in the S&D group, and it is great to see concrete and substantial progress being made already by a Labour voice in Europe.

Last week in the Dail chamber, I challenged both the Taoiseach and the Minister for Housing on the Government’s failed record on housing and homelessness, urging the Government to invest the Apple billions in delivering social and affordable homes, implement real protections for renters, and, crucially, pass our Homeless Families Bill to protect children and keep them out of homelessness. I listened carefully to the Minister’s response but no matter how many figures he throws across the floor at me, on the key metrics, his housing policy is clearly failing. Rents, house prices, and homelessness are all up. The Central Bank, the Housing Commission, and many more agree with us in Labour that new targets of more than 50,000 new builds per year must be published and implemented. Yet we have not seen those new targets – despite Government promising months ago that they would be published without delay. With rent increases of 27% over the past three years, an enormous total of 23,000 eviction notices issued from quarter 2 of last year to the second quarter of this year alone, and the average age of a first-time buyer now 39, the failures of successive Governments and their overreliance on the private market has now become glaringly evident.

However, we are all very conscious that we have a very limited time left in the current Dáil term. While speculation is rife as to the precise date of the General Election, we know that this Government is in its eleventh hour. Be it November or March, we in Labour are ready for an energetic, positive, and progressive General Election campaign. As Party leader, it has been a pleasure for me to see so many incredible Labour candidates already chosen across the country, and it has been an honour to attend selection conventions recently in constituencies stretching from Sligo-Leitrim to Tipperary South. At our recent party ‘Think-In’ in Malahide, we as a party laid out our priorities and our positive message for change in the upcoming election – focused on how to fix our broken housing model, deliver the Labour Children’s Charter and ensure decent resources for our public services.

I know many of you have been out on the doors already, dropping leaflets, and volunteering to support our great candidates in preparation for the imminent General Election. I would like to extend my gratitude to each of you for your dedication and tireless efforts thus far. As members of a campaigning party, I encourage all activists and supporters, new or old, to join us in strengthening our campaign efforts for the upcoming election. In the coming weeks and months there is a real opportunity to grow as a party and to increase support for our Labour values of solidarity, fairness, and equality. I look forward to seeing many of you out and about supporting our brilliant candidates and building better together!

Le gach dea-ghuí,