Michael Collins (Cork South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am grateful to have the opportunity to speak this evening. I have no doubt that at this stage almost everyone in the country is aware that our housing and homelessness situation is at crisis point. This Bill seeks to declare the housing and homelessness problem a national emergency. In March of this year, the Taoiseach stated he had no problem describing the housing shortage or the homelessness crisis as an emergency. Can the Minister of State, Deputy English, state why we are still waiting for this to formally happen? Circumstances have only got worse since March, not better, and action needs to be taken.

I am blue in the face begging the Government to take action. We need it. There are 11,304 people homeless. Of these, many are children. Focus Ireland has reported that 193 additional children became homeless in September of this year. This is heartbreaking. These children need to be given the security of having a place they can call home with Christmas less than six weeks away. It is unthinkable that almost 4,000 children have almost no home for Christmas. Last year, we saw on the "Late Late Show" a lovely young girl who was homeless and living in cramped conditions. This year, it is sad to say the housing and homelessness crisis is no better.

Currently, there is a vicious cycle, with people being evicted from their homes by private landlords due to their properties being sold or repossessed. The footfall in my office of young people unable to secure mortgages is considerable. I believed the Rebuilding Ireland scheme, launched earlier this year, was going to be the answer to all my prayers to have young people able to secure a mortgage but we know that there has been a 50% rise in homelessness.

I will certainly support this Bill. I thank Deputy Healy for introducing it. I am very disappointed Fianna Fáil is not supporting it tonight.

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