Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Ba mhaith liom mo bhuíochas a ghabháil leis an Teachta Ellis a chur an rún seo os comhair na Dála ar an ócáid seo. Tá sé rí-thábhachtach go bhfuil muid ag plé an rúin seo, ach is trua go gcaithimid é a phlé.

We are discussing a motion we should not be discussing. The Government is in place four and a half years, yet we have not seen any action taken that has had an effect on housing waiting lists or on homelessness in this and other cities. The opposite has happened. Any effect the Government has had since coming to power has been negative and now we have a greater housing list than ever before. We have an increased number of rough sleepers, in Dublin in particular. I know about Dublin, but other Deputies could speak for their cities.

Men and women do not choose to sleep on the street in winter or summer for the fun of it. Sleeping on the street is a cry for help because they have no alternative. If nothing else, I wish that this message got through the thick skulls of Government Members sitting here day in day out without taking action. I have heard statements from the Government saying it will look into the matter. They have been looking far too long at this issue. I heard the claptrap from Deputy Patrick O'Donovan when he spoke about a long-term plan. The problem with the Government is that it has long fingered every plan and action that should have been taken from day one. Some of the plans and actions that should have been taken were cost neutral. Simple steps that could have been taken were not taken, although they might have helped.

The Government could have taken simple steps, such as ensuring local authorities had a quicker turnaround in terms of their voids. It could also have taken steps like the proposals mentioned in our motion. The current and previous Governments have not taken simple decisions. This has meant that the regeneration of parts of my and other areas have never gone ahead. This is not just about sites that are shovel ready, as Deputy O'Donovan proposed. There are a number of sites in places like Ballyfermot where planning permission was given previously, but these sites are sitting idle. There has been no movement on them since the current Government came to power and since the previous Government made a hames of the economy.

Look, for example, at St. Michael's Estate, Cherry Orchard and the likes of Cornamona, where there was a senior citizens' development but it has been knocked down. It is a serviced site and a developer could begin on that site in the morning. Look at a site under the control of the Government - it is an OPW site - in Inchicore. Planning permission was granted for 200 houses on that site, but the builder's business collapsed. That should not stop the State stepping in and going ahead with those buildings. Another site in the locality was earmarked for housing and the owners applied for planning permission, but the HSE bought the site and intends to use it as a builders' depot for the children's hospital, a laudable project.

In my area and other areas of our cities there are sites, houses, homes and buildings which could be easily converted at cost and made available for those on the housing lists. If we walk around this neighbourhood day or night, but particularly at night, we will see people sleeping in doorways. Sleeping rough is now at a level I have never seen before. This is a national crisis. The Government should recognise this, because when it came into power, it produced emergency measures to deal with banking and other issues. However, it never addressed the human or humanitarian crisis. It never produced emergency legislation to deal with a rent cap on private rented accommodation or to purchase compulsorily or acquire property suitable to address homelessness.

This is madness. It is long past the time for words. We need action and if the Government is not willing to take action, its members should get out of their seats and let somebody else take the action that is required.

See this speech in context