Kevin Humphreys (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I have two quick questions. I hear constantly that it is not worth while for a couple to stay together and that a lone parent is financially better off. Are there financial gains in going from partnership lone parenthood? I am dealing with this. This would be said to me every week. I am asking this of One Family. Ms Kiernan and Ms Maher probably have much more experience in this area than I have. What is the answer? It is a little like the old story when we were dealing with immigrants where it was claimed they left the pram at the bus stop and got another pram. That could always be broken down by saying it was absolutely wrong and giving the facts. How does one deal with a comment, which might be getting ingrained in a couple's minds, to the effect that they would be financially better off whereas they would not be? What is the response to that?

On the unintended consequences, I agree strongly with Mr. Allen that we need that level of research because that is the only way we can identify the unintended consequences. I was not aware of the narrow aspect to which Mr. Allen referred but it would indicate that my experience is correct because that is how it works in communities. It is a very small level. I see homeless people allocated accommodation in flat complexes. Everybody who got accommodation during the emergency was nearly homeless, but it then became folklore that the only way a person could get a flat was if he or she left his or her mother or if he or she went homeless.

My experience with the private rental sector is that we have been able to deal with the increases in rent, especially if a person has been on rent allowance because he or she has been able to go back and try to get it dealt with one to one. Where we have had little success is in cases where the accommodation has been sold. That has been the real driver of homelessness. My hobby horse is Airbnb, especially within the Dublin area. I looked through my e-mails before the meeting started and came across an e-mail from a landlord who has just bought an apartment asking me about the regulations relating to Airbnb. I answered him quickly asking whether the apartment had been let originally and he responded that it had been let before he purchased it. While I accept this is a Dublin region issue, the majority of the homelessness problem is in Dublin and one of the key drivers in losing supply within the Dublin area is Airbnb. It is a choice if we are trying to deal with the supply issue. Do we supply the tourist market that has a negative financial impact or do we supply housing for the homeless? I say we supply housing for the homeless and deal with the lack of hotel bedrooms in a different manner.

I would like to hear a little more on the Dublin 15 experiment. Communicating information is vital to starting to deal with problems and I would ask the witnesses to expand a little on the Dublin 15 experiment.