Grace O'Sullivan (Green Party)
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I thank Dr. Murphy and Dr. Hearne for their report, Investing in the Right to a Home: Housing, HAPs and Hubs. It is fantastic because it enables debate. It highlights that we continue to be in a serious emergency state with regard to the supply of homes and the social responsibility of the Government. The market forces are not delivering housing with any speed given the crisis we face. The Government and we, as Members of the Oireachtas, are firefighting and not finding solutions at all. Hubs are not homes. Based on my understanding of the witnesses' report, the hubs are enabling a long-term problem in our society. For the moment they are putting a roof over people's head, but that may not be the right social response in this emergency situation. Local authorities should be empowered and given the capital to start supplying housing as soon as possible. On security of tenure, people should not be forced to compete in the market and should not suffer the possibility of being evicted from their homes. Is the Government's current policy sustainable given that we are in housing poverty and that we are seeing inequality in housing supply and a lack of sustainability?