Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I think the Taoiseach was wrong in his emphasis in his reply. My presentation was about the wider issue.

When Cork City Council’s budget for homelessness has gone from about €100,000 to €3 million in four years, what does that tell the Government? That was my point. Is it to keep throwing money at the same solutions? It tells me the Taoiseach is not getting the scale of the problem - you have never got the scale of this problem - and do I think the Government ever has. The Government is not building enough secure accommodation. This August, in Cork city alone, the number of homeless on the streets went up 32% on August of last year. The funding is stopping the escalation but is not dealing with the root causes of it. There is a chronic inability to build social housing of scale. There is no question about that. We all know it.

See this speech in context