Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)

I understand that other Deputies will follow me. Earlier today when I asked the Taoiseach about the purpose of this Bill, the reinstatement of Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000, he claimed the Government changed it because of demands from all sides, including here in the Dáil. Although there was certainly pressure from some on the Government benches, the changes that were introduced in 2002 were strongly opposed in this House, including by Sinn Féin — we were not alone on that occasion. We all know where the pressure came from. It was from the developers and the speculators who contribute so much to the funding of the Minister's party. It was one of the quickest turn-arounds ever for a political lobby.

Let us examine the other side of this. People with disabilities campaigned tirelessly for a rights-based disability Bill. The final Bill was a bitter disappointment to many who had spent a lifetime working and promoting the introduction of rights-based legislation for their loved ones. The Bill they secured in no way reflected the needs of people with disabilities. They were treated differently from the speculators and developers, who lobbied for less than 18 months. For this Government, rights-based legislation was never on the cards for those who needed it, but the Galway tent lobby was acceded to with undue haste.

The Fianna Fáil-Progressive Democrats Government has been in power since 1997. Back then the housing crisis was developing and although it was clear what was going to happen as the economy grew, the Government failed to act. The Minister and the Taoiseach failed to act. They placed total reliance for the provision of housing, including social housing, on the private sector. The Government's approach was and is driven by the drive for profits by the land speculators and the developers. This has played into the hands of the lending institutions, which are profiting from the massive scale of mortgages weighing down on young families and — take note — into perpetuity. That is the reality those young families face. We pointed out that at the time and we stated that local authorities must be given a lead role in providing homes for our people, but that was ignored. Local authority housing as a proportion of overall housing supply has fallen to a record low under this Government. This State has one of the lowest outputs of social housing in the European Union, and that is an incontrovertible fact.

The consequences of the housing crisis go far beyond the issue of accommodation. Poor housing is a contributory factor to poor health among sections of our population. The exorbitant price of homes has a knock-on effect for the care of children. It leads to both parents in young families having to work to make ends meet. The pressure on family budgets and on the demand for child care places is enormous. More importantly, the quality of life for children and indeed for parents is adversely affected.

Thousands of social and affordable homes would now be in place if Part V had been left as it was introduced in the Bill in 2000. It can still have that important effect if now reinstated, and that is the challenge we put to the Government tonight. We ask that the Government end the scandal by which a nation with an abundance of wealth sees so many people sleeping rough on our streets or living in overcrowded conditions, for example, with two families sharing accommodation. All their needs should be met and this Bill will go some way to doing that.

I commend the make room campaign which is being spearheaded by Focus Ireland, the Simon Communities of Ireland, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul and Threshold. They have said that with strong political leadership, a responsive policy agenda and adequate resources, homelessness could be ended. The target date of 2010 for ending rough sleeping and long-term homelessness has been set by the Government, but that target will not be reached unless the Government prioritises social and affordable housing based on the needs of people.

The make room campaign has stated that in recent years, the profile of homelessness has changed, with fewer people sleeping rough. However, thousands of people remain without a home, many living for years in insecure hostel or emergency and temporary accommodation. They say that turning the corner on homelessness will require much more comprehensive and sustainable housing solutions, and we absolutely endorse the make room campaign view of that. One of the first steps in the solution to homelessness lies in the delivery of a needs assessment. The campaign has identified that as a means of establishing the actual need of each applicant who is identified as homeless or in need of housing, and we support that proposition. Individual solutions can then be developed based on the facts derived from that needs assessment.

The social housing stock in the Twenty-six Counties is inadequate. Let the Minister acknowledge that fact. As we stated previously, much-needed local authority homes have not been delivered. Some 44,000 family units are in need of housing, equivalent to more than 120,000 citizens. That is the issue that needs to be tackled. I am telling the Minister of State not to roll out his statistics this evening or tomorrow. We are tired listening to them from the Minister of State, the Taoiseach and the coalition parties in Government. These statistics mean absolutely nothing to the people who need housing. What we need is action and we are demonstrating that, clearly indicating to the Minister of State one step that can be taken. We urge him to adopt this Bill and make it his own, and we shall gladly applaud him for it.

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