Dessie Ellis (Dublin North West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

There are roughly 3,500 people on the housing waiting list that are elderly or have a disability, which is approximately 3.5% of those waiting for social housing in this State. Many people placed on waiting lists will be able to obtain rent allowance. While an offer of unstable housing is no solution and seeks only to perpetuate the poverty trap, it is something at a time when little housing is available. Unfortunately for older people and for those with a disability this is not an option. These people require secure and suitable housing which meets their specific needs.

Grants are made available to make housing more suitable to specific needs and in recognition of the priority which people with special needs must take in the housing system. As in the case of all other forms of public services, it is the people who need the most that are catered for by the State as the market is unwilling to do so. For this reason, the 40% cut to adaptation grants announced in March this year is devastating. This is the only option for many people who require specific tailored housing to meet their needs. These people cannot go elsewhere and this cut is a door slamming in their faces.

I recently spoke to a young mother of two children, Victoria Gonzales, who was badly hurt in an accident. She spent a long time away from her family recovering in hospital. Following painstaking rehabilitation Victoria was ready to return to some form of independent living and to care for her children despite her paralysis. Her courage and dedication facing down her misfortune was rewarded with no support from the State and she was forced to live in a cramped room in Beaumont hospital for almost two years. The Taoiseach personally promised her a home but nothing came of that August 2012 meeting. Until last week, Victoria had been 21 months in hospital away from her family and without any hope of change in her circumstances. However, following an article in The Sun, she has now been promised a home. Not every person in Victoria's circumstances will have their plight reported in an article in a national newspaper or have a chance meeting with a Taoiseach. Some people do not have the strength or courage which Victoria had to push forward and claim her rights.

Housing need has never been so high or severe. At one point, a medical priority was a good signifier of a person being housed soon. In some areas, this is now relatively meaningless. I deal with priority cases all of the time, many of which involve people who cannot go on in their current circumstances but somehow manage to scrape through their days. This is not discretionary spending; it is essential spending. It is not a pot that should be limited by over-zealous accounts but a fund to ensure those who need the most get the least they deserve, a secure home.

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