Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Aontú) | Oireachtas source

Last week Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and Green Party Deputies voted against a common sense and humane Aontú amendment on the eviction motion. They voted against an amendment that would have provided protection from eviction for people with disabilities, for people with a terminal illness, for people with a cancer diagnosis, for people who have suffered stroke, have advanced heart disease and for people who are suffering from poor mental health. The Government voted against protections from eviction for young, pregnant mothers and young children and for pensioners. The Government Deputies own that vote and that decision they made. As a result, those cohorts are vulnerable to exactly that in the coming weeks.

Last night I asked the Minister for Social Protection had she seen any research before she made the decision on the eviction ban or on the impact it would have on the level of evictions that would happen over the next number of months. I asked if there was any modelling done or any evidence in respect of this decision that the Government made at Cabinet level, and she could not answer that question. A Green Party Minister was asked last week on radio had he seen any evidence on modelling, numbers, facts or figures around what impact this would have on the number of evictions that would happen over the next years. That Minister could not answer the question either. This has been an evidence-free decision. The Government has made it on one part ideology. I can understand Fine Gael have that ideology of laissez-fairewhen it comes to people in need. Fianna Fáil unfortunately is a hollow ideological husk that will go in whatever direction the wind blows. The Green Party has run up the white flag and retreated to climate change and the culture wars, forgetting about the bread and butter issues affecting people at the moment. That is the reality. The Government does not know the impact this is going to have over the next while. This is important. How do we put in place mitigating factors in respect of people who are going to be made homeless? How do we make contingency plans for them? There are well over 4,500 notices to quit, eviction notices, at the moment and fewer than 1,100 homes available to rent in the State. There are many counties, up to a dozen currently, with zero emergency accommodation beds left. The truth is that many people are going to be forced into tents, Garda stations and homelessness.

The Government is continuing with its policy. We have had Phil Hogan, Alan Kelly, Simon Coveney, Eoghan Murphy and now Darragh O'Brien, five Ministers with responsibility for housing and four political parties, and just one outcome - a never-ending housing crisis that is worsening every year. We have the highest rents, the highest number of homeless people and the highest house prices. It is seeping into every element of society. There is not a section of society now that is free from this. Hundreds of people have died in homelessness since the Government came into power. We have tens of thousands of parents lying in beds tonight in stress, wondering what they are going to do when this eviction ban collapses. We have hundreds of thousands of people who are crucified with extortionate rents, hundreds of thousands of families that are put to the pin of their collars paying mortgages. We have even got a new generation of young people who are being forced to emigrate because they cannot pay for rent or for houses. We have a commuter hell for tens of thousands of families because they cannot afford a house that is close to the place they have to work. They get home for 30 minutes every night and have a stress-filled 30 minutes with their children. That is a direct result of the homelessness crisis as well. The homelessness crisis is leading to poor nutrition, low educational attainment, and bad mental health for a generation of children without the stability of the home. It is leading to doctors and nurses who cannot afford to live in this country any more and therefore they are not on the wards when we need them. We see the hospital and health crisis increase. Gardaí and teachers are in the same boat. Many of them cannot work on the east coast of the country because of the crisis. I have no confidence in this Government. This Government has to go.

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