Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

This is a serious subject. There are two elements that we need to keep in mind. There is no doubt that the Government’s policy is working but the problem is that it is working too slowly by virtue of a whole series of things that are happening. For instance, there are people living in houses where there was no benefit from selling the house and moving on, and no need to do so. However, they have done just that in recent times because they could reduce their mortgage dramatically. That happened just before the housing crash. They moved on and it lightened the burden on them. It created a problem in schools, hospitals, etc., in the areas to which they moved. That is happening again at the moment and we need to do something about it. In the past month, I have seen a number of people whose tenancies have been terminated – wrongly in many cases – because the landlord wants the house back. That can be for various reasons and there is no one particular reason. There is a fear that house prices may crash and I believe we are heading towards a crash and we need to be careful.

In recent weeks, I have seen families who are either a long time waiting or had to vacate a house they had bought previously because of anti-social behaviour. It is appalling behaviour in some cases. We have vetting in this country but I wonder what sort of vetting was done in those particular cases. People moved into apartment blocks and made life impossible for their next-door neighbours. I had a host of people in my clinic at the weekend on that subject. It is not going away; it is getting worse. There are people who have no regard for anyone else’s rights or entitlements. They think that once they get into particular accommodation, it is their right and entitlement to make life miserable and unbearable for their immediate neighbours, above, below or beside them. Last weekend was worrying in that regard. There is a clear indication from such people that they have the right to do whatever they wish to make life unbearable for their neighbours, leaving the neighbours virtually homeless because they have nowhere to go. Where do they go? I suggest, as an emergency measure, that provision be made fairly soon. There is no point doing it in six months or a year, as we tend to do. I am not blaming anyone for this; it is a fact of life. We need to have a stock of houses that are complete, in urban areas in particular, and we need to purchase them and make them available to people.

The local authority or the approved housing body could get rent for it. Incidentally, the approved housing bodies were good in the beginning in terms of discipline within the estates and so on. It is not so anymore. Not all of them apply the same standards. As a result, there are people coming to us as public representatives saying they used to feel that this was a safe place but it is not anymore. Something has to be done about that.

In conclusion, there is an urgent necessity to acquire a variety of houses for people now - a mix of four-bedroom, three-bedroom, two-bedroom and one-bedroom houses. There are a lot of single adults, women and men, now applying. They have nowhere else to go. For example, last night I met a young person in a large family with difficulties within the family etc. What can one say to such a person in order to make his or her life less miserable than it is at the moment and to improve their quality of life?

I have not made reference to the climate and nature elements that may come on board but I can do that. I am open to that, Chair.