Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Anti-Austerity Alliance) | Oireachtas source

The Minister's party has been in government for five years. The Minister is in his position for two years and it is only after the election that we hear that the Constitution was to blame all along. The Minister should tell us the clauses involved. He could have had a referendum on these key issues instead of the one on the presidential age, which nobody in the country cared about. I do not believe that is the case. There is a lot the Minister could do.

The Minister said there has been a 10% increase in families exiting homelessness. That is a bit of a laugh because in January there was a 148% increase in homelessness, the highest ever in the history of the State. It is three times more than anything that ever happened previously. Last month there was a 36% increase in Dublin, although it is not just Dublin. Galway and Cork are starting to feel this pressure as well but the Minister told us earlier that relationship breakdown is responsible for homelessness and is a key factor. That is an absolute joke. I will tell the Minister what is responsible for homelessness.

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