2,000 applications for 20 homes – when will Govt deliver cost-rental homes?
2,000 applications for 20 homes - when will Govt deliver cost-rental homes? - The Labour Party
Labour housing spokesperson Conor Sheehan TD has slammed Government for failing to build homes that are so desperately needed.
Following reports that 2,000 applications were made for just 20 homes available in cost-rental homes in Clongriffin, Deputy Sheehan said Minister Browne must outline plans for the delivery of affordable homes.
Deputy Sheehan said:
“Report after report, statistic after statistic, everything points to the same conclusion: Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael have no plan. Homelessness figures continue to climb, rents remain sky-high, and now we see house prices spiralling out of control once again. This Government has chosen to sit on the sidelines while people suffer the consequences of their inaction.
“Minister Browne hit the headlines last month for attempting to appoint someone to check his homework, rather than put the Strategic Housing Office on a legislative footing so it could have real power to impact delivery of homes.
“The number of people applying for homes in Clongriffin represents a snapshot of the sheer demand and desperate need for affordable housing.
“The housing crisis is not inevitable. Labour has a clear, workable vision to address it. We called on Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil to commit an additional €1.45 billion in capital for housing delivery. Our plan is comprehensive: it would protect renters, end speculative land hoarding, and double the state’s delivery of cost rental and affordable housing. These measures are crucial to ensuring that every person in Ireland has access to a safe, secure, and affordable home.
“No one is immune from the impact and tremors of the housing crisis. However throughout the lifetime of the failed Housing for All project, Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil have decided to consign single people to the scrap heap.
“Single income households are growing and deserve affordable housing. More than 400,000 people in Ireland live alone, yet every time the Government talk about housing it’s based on joint incomes. Government continues to set housing policy that is based on the assumption that people should aspire to couple up.
“The sheer volume of applications for homes in Clongriffin highlights the myriad of ways the housing crisis has gotten away from Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil. Where is the action on the crisis of our generation?”