Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

There are points at which one can see something is coming to a crux. We are at such a point. While all the initiatives in the programme are welcome, many of them are medium term. The Tánaiste's constituency is next door to mine and they have the same profiles. She sees the same problems as I do. It has reached a new level. The Simon Communities survey demonstrated it in hard facts. There must be solutions that are accelerated now that can be delivered in months. There are houses available that people cannot use given that there is an impediment to using them if they might not qualify for the fair deal scheme.

The Housing Agency is driving an initiative to bring vacant houses back into use. We are reaching the point at which we will not even be able to accommodate people in hotels. Will the Government consider pursuing short-term initiatives that can be realised within months?

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