Tommy Broughan (Dublin Bay North, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The Government slashed the councils' funding and on many occasions voted to keep the funding for Dublin City Council and Fingal County Council low. Councillors had no choice. We need more than empathy; we need action. There is no credible delivery pipeline of social and affordable housing in Dublin Bay North or the rest of the country. The statistics in the reports we received recently show that only 322 direct build homes were delivered by Dublin City Council across the city of Dublin in the period 2015 to 2017 and that only seven homes were built by Fingal County Council in the period 2010 to 2015 and only 76 in 2016-17. There are well over 7,000 applicants on the housing list in Fingal County Council, as well as over 400 homeless families. It is no wonder that the European Commission, in its latest post-programme surveillance report, has severely criticised the Government's flimsy and lethargic housing policies. The Commission highlights the almost 20% increase in rents since the crash-era peaks and the pathetic trickle of social and affordable housing. The daft.iereport published today shows that rents in Dublin 13, a key postal district in Dublin Bay North, are in the territory of €1,800 to €2,000 per month. What chance does a person in receipt of the housing assistance payment have of finding a house? The Government proposes to spend €1 billion per year from 2019 on the housing assistance payment. Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil have spent approximately €7 billion on rent support payments in recent years. Why not just build houses?

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