Niamh Smyth (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

My colleagues, Deputies Cowen and Casey, have been front and centre in addressing the housing crisis and have put forward some key priorities from Fianna Fáil's perspective. We have put forward numerous Bills, such as the Vacant Housing Refurbishment Bill, to get to grips with the crisis. We successfully pressed for further investment in social housing.

The Taoiseach has claimed homelessness is not increasing and that it is low by international standards. That is simply untrue and misleading. The most recent figures show a total of more than 8,000 people homeless in Ireland, a record high. Nationally, there are in excess of 5,000 adults and 3,000 children homeless. This points to a clear example of a Government that has focused on spin over substance to date and that has downplayed the prevailing crisis.

The change that is proposed will impose a larger burden on property owners in proving that minor development is required. Currently, there are more than 100,000 on social housing waiting lists. Despite this high number, only 658 social houses were built last year. In addition, rents have soared to in excess of 32% above the peak in 2008. This means that Dublin city dwellers are spending as much as 55% of their take-home pay on rent alone.

The high house prices, combined with the Central Bank's restrictive rules, have meant that the home ownership level has reduced to a record low of 69% throughout the country. This is largely because the Government has scrapped the affordable housing scheme of 2011 and never re-established it. Although the Government launched its housing plan several times, it has not built a single unit in a number of counties. It has deliberately removed local authorities' role and slashed the Part V proportion to 10%.

This restrictive policy has meant that the State is well behind. To put the numbers into perspective, in 2007 to 2010 Fianna Fáil built more than 14,000 social houses. That is, on average, more than 3,500 per year and 117 homes per local authority per year. The record high for Fine Gael is between 2011 and 2016 when it built 3,050 social houses, which is 508 houses per year, on average, and only 16 per local authority per year. The approach Fianna Fáil would take is different in that it would focus on the home first. We would focus on new units and wraparound service. We believe HAP recipients should not be removed from the social housing list. In order to make homes more affordable, we would establish a new affordable home purchase scheme on State lands, as well as establishing an affordable rent scheme on State lands.

When we talk about homelessness and the housing crisis in Ireland and while I accept much of what has been said today, there is a perception that it only affects the larger urban areas. Even in rural constituencies such as mine in Cavan-Monaghan, people are on the social housing waiting list for three to four years. My local authority does not seem to have the capacity or wherewithal to build the types of developments that are needed when it comes to social housing. We have generations of families, including married couples, living with their parents because they cannot get on the property ladder and own their own home. In his endeavours to address this crisis I also ask the Minister to recognise the fact that it is not just urban areas where housing issues arise. It is also an issue in rural areas, especially when it comes to council housing.

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