Jack Wall (Kildare South, Labour)

I wish to share time with Deputies Upton and Morgan.

I thank the Minister for dealing with a matter regarding the social welfare office in Newbridge. The office was dealing with a backlog of eight weeks. I raised the matter in the budget debate and I have since been informed by the Minister that three additional staff positions have been allocated and five more will be approved for October. This will make a significant difference to dealing with the backlog which is affecting so many people in the Kildare area. According to the letter I received from the Minister, 11,000 claims consisting of 8,000 jobseeker's benefit claims and 2,000 one-parent family payments are currently being processed in the Newbridge office.

I will argue against the budget from the perspective of the poor. The rent subsidy will be clawed back from the payments received by an old age pensioner or a single parent. I have no doubt that on 1 January 2009, these old age pensioners and single parents in rented accommodation will be given a new book but on the same day they will receive a cheque from the HSE which will be €5 short of the original payment they had received. I cannot understand how the Minister thinks that those people will be able to survive on an increase of €1.50 a week, given the rise in ESB, fuel, food and clothing costs. The Minister stated that this increase would bring these individuals in line with local authority tenants. However, recent newspaper reports highlight the significant difference between a person in a local authority house and those in rented accommodation. Those in rented accommodation are at the behest of landlords who in many instances use agents as a go-between. It is practically impossible for the senior citizen or the single parent to obtain information about repairs to the house.

A newspaper report last week stated that one fifth of rented accommodation inspected by the local authorities, a total of 3,000 out of 12,000, as unfit for habitation, yet the Minister states that this is acceptable. She is not allowing for the fact that the people in rented accommodation are the poorest in the land. Any of us canvassing in last year's election campaign or in the local election campaigns could easily identify these people because they were living in hovels. In many instances the landlord was preparing to raze the building but leased out some of the rooms to recoup his costs. Heating and lighting were non-existent and ventilation was very poor. These premises were not suitable living accommodation, yet there was no recourse because many of the local authorities did not insist on these properties being upgraded to an acceptable standard.

The Minister stated yesterday that she was in consultation with the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government. I raised the matter of rented accommodation with the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government because the local authority in County Kildare had raised the rent excessively.

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