Barry Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Like Deputy Michael P. Kitt, I welcome the opportunity presented by Deputy Dessie Ellis and his party to discuss this issue and the contents of the Bill, to acknowledge their right to do so and to compliment them on their efforts. I would not call the Bill "flawed". Sinn Féin, Fianna Fáil and many others have made suggestions in the past few years and if they had been taken on board, we might not have reached this juncture. If the Bill is adjudged to be opportunistic by the Minister, he should acknowledge that the opportunity was handed to them in the form of a penalty kick in so far as it was plain for them to do so.

It is important that rather than attacking the policies, proposals or suggestions made by the Opposition in the past few years, the Minister adequately attack the problem and allow us to look back in any given year at improvements that might have been made. It is particularly poignant that the Bill is being discussed on the first anniversary of the death of Mr. Jonathan Corrie. We, again, collectively send our condolences to his family. I acknowledge the hurt, difficulty and trauma experienced by many people on a regular basis and their families who are affected by the terrible dilemma that is homelessness, the threat of homelessness, the worry and fear of being left without a home and the greater trauma and frustration of knowing that should that eventuality become a reality, the State will not be in a position to help with what some have rightly described as a human right.

With many others, I hoped this terrible incident 12 months ago would be a watershed moment and the catalyst for the Minister to act where the Government had failed to act in the previous four years, albeit with different Ministers, namely, Deputy Jan O'Sullivan and former Deputy Phil Hogan. However, having played a small role in the negotiations initiated by the Minister, for which we commended him with the best of intent and which were conducted in good faith, a year on the commitments to end homelessness or go a long way towards it, unfortunately, have not been realised. That is not just my opinion or that of various Opposition Members; it is also coming from those at the coalface. Others have referred to the commentary by stakeholders earlier today on Mr. Corrie's anniversary, including the Peter McVerry Trust, Focus Ireland, Simon and the Society of St. Vincent de Paul. Local authority officials will tell the Minister that this problem has not gone away and that it has deteriorated further. It was a problem initially, it became a crisis and has now become an emergency which the Minister seems unable to unravel, which is most unfortunate. The resolutions he eventually brought forward in recent weeks were too little and too late. The vacuum in the meantime, not to mention the vacuum created by inaction in the previous two or three years, has resulted in significant increases in the rents being sought and paid by many, as previous speakers said.

The immediacy of the problem remains, notwithstanding the Minister's efforts, some of which have been commendable, as late and as little as they were. Rent certainty, rent controls and the deposit protection scheme are welcome developments which should have happened long before this. Somebody who could not afford to pay the rent or who was finding it difficult to do so six or eight weeks ago before the Minister's announcements still finds it difficult and many people cannot do so. We discussed the details of the Minister's proposals in the debate on the residential tenancies legislation earlier, but unfortunately they do not address the dilemma faced by the people concerned.

The Taoiseach refused the suggestion again today, as he, the Minister and others have continuously done over the last 18 months to two years, and will not entertain the possibility of increases in rent supplement. We accept and acknowledge that the supply situation will take time to unravel despite the late start that has been made. I reiterate that it has been a late start. It was too easy to say that the funds were not available. It is too easy to say that the Government would not help the construction sector during that time because it owed it something because of the association with a previous Government. That, at least, is the picture the Government wants to paint. It held water with the public and was an excuse for inaction on the Government's part and for many other issues pertaining to the previous election. That election campaign could be re-run in the next election. People will not buy that anymore. They are not interested in it anymore. As I have often said, people gave the Minister, his party and Government colleagues a huge majority and asked them to take their role seriously. It asked all members of Government who were given the responsibility and the privilege to enact legislation, to address difficulties, propose initiatives, put policy in place, allow it to be debated with colleagues here and the Opposition, to allow legislation to be scrutinised and amendments sought and accepted and ultimately to put better legislation in place to address these issues. The Government has let itself down in many areas in that regard. I can point to the highest level of guillotining of any Government. That was the sort of arrogance that took hold. It has been reiterated and repeated on several occasions against a backdrop of, supposedly, a 6% growth in the economy, of us having gone into recovery over 12 months ago and of an extra €1.5 billion being pulled out of the hat in the recent budget. The Government believes that budget is one which will allow the Minister and his Government party colleagues to be re-elected, because it has addressed the USC and taxation issues and has put more money in people's pockets, or so it believes. The increasing car insurance, let alone health insurance, puts paid to that.

Let us forget that scenario. The Minister has failed to listen to the best suggestion for addressing this issue in the short-term and for addressing the immediacy of the problem in order to stabilise the situation to allow the Government's building programme eventually to take hold, namely rent allowance and subvention. It will be the Government's greatest downfall. Only today the Taoiseach refused to entertain that suggestion.

There is no doubt there will be many Departments across Government which will come in under budget in the coming weeks. That is the election war chest that will be used to fight fires as they arise, if they arise, around the country in various constituencies. It should be incumbent on the Minister today to recognise the fact, on this day of all days on the anniversary that occurs, that in an area where the Government has failed miserably it should correct that wrong. Funding should be sought and collected from those sources and set aside to address this rent issue immediately in the form of rent supplement. That, at this late stage, would be welcomed by all sides of the House as a reasonable method by which this issue could be stabilised and people could be prevented from becoming homeless. That is what is being faced. There was also the eventual correction to the insolvency legislation whereby the bank veto gave them the power to ensure that families were put at risk, against the backdrop of housing not being available.

I do not understand why the Government is allowing the sale by NAMA of Project Arrow. A portfolio worth €7 billion is reputedly being sold for €1 billion, with 50% of it being residential units. They could be available for people on housing lists if the Government got them for €100,000 a pop. That is on the basis of the Government having been informed by NAMA in recent months that there will be a €2 billion surplus or dividend available to the Government when its work is complete.

They are just some final suggestions, at the eleventh hour, in the hope that the Minister might take them on board, despite the fact that he has failed to listen to them and acknowledge them in the past. I add my voice and support to the Bill. There may be elements that could be amended but that is what I would expect a caring and understanding Government to do. That is something I can live with. Any Member of the Opposition is entitled to play his or her part by virtue of the opportunity he or she been given by the electorate to represent them in a fashion that they see fit. If a Member sees fit to put forward legislation, a Bill or motion, that seeks to address the inaction of Government over five years which has brought us to this scenario, he or she is more than entitled to do so and deserves my support at least, if nobody else's.

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