Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank my colleague, an Teachta Ó Broin, for bringing forward this Bill to ban co-living developments. The Minister, Deputy O'Brien, is from my constituency and while we have no such developments in progress that does not mean they will not be here in the future. I am already dealing with them on a small scale and there is no disputing the fact that unless the Minister is stopped, we will have large scale co-living developments in places such as Balbriggan and Swords and right across north County Dublin. It is ridiculous that we have to discuss banning these co-living developments, especially in the era of Covid-19, which has exposed the dangers of overcrowded living conditions for all to see. These developments are unacceptable and they are an unbelievable waste of land.

We have the greatest housing crisis since the foundation of the State. When the State was founded, we had men such as Seán Lemass and Noël Browne, who pushed for mass State sponsored social house building programmes when in government. It is little wonder that by 1940, some 41% of the housing stock had been built by the State, benefiting a cross-section of the population with affordable rents. It is a pity the vision of that time no longer exists. Instead we have politicians so enthralled to their market solutions and neoliberal ideology that they cannot see the damage they are doing.

We should be clear about what we are discussing. Co-living is the nice name for it. We are talking about 21st century tenements. My father was born in a tenement. He spent his life as an activist and continues as an activist and trade unionist. He campaigned for the eradication of tenement housing and for the building of decent social housing. He and his generation succeeded in that aim. The slums were cleared and tenement housing was banished to being a relic of an old Ireland by the members of the Dublin Housing Action Committee. What do we have in Ireland in 2020? We have spivs and capitalists pushing 21st century tenements, just the same as they did in the 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. Is that what this Government, including the Green Party, Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, call progress? It is 100 years since partition and the foundation of the 26-county State and this Government has decided to resurrect tenements. It has learned nothing except how to line its pockets.

These buildings can be painted in any bright colours, televisions can be put on the ceilings and all the mod cons can be added but that does not change the fact that 60 people living in bedrooms the size of parking spaces and sharing one kitchen is a modern day tenement. My father and mother and people like Bernard and Betty Browne and all the activists of the Dublin Housing Action Committee fought to eradicate tenements and I am damned if I will stand here and allow the Government to let them go ahead for my grandson to live in.

See this speech in context