Mark Ward (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank my constituency colleague, Deputy Ó Broin, not only for tabling this motion but also for writing a blueprint for how to fix the housing crisis caused by Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. He has put forward solutions that will allow workers and families to put a secure roof over their heads. Only last week, Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael voted against giving renters a break. To compound this, they also voted to allow vultures to continue to pick at the flesh of ordinary workers and families who are desperate for a home.

We need to get housing prices under control after years of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael failures and give first-time buyers a chance. A price of €400,000 is not affordable in anybody's language. We need to make sure that families whose housing needs have changed are not left languishing in overcrowded homes. Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil housing policies have created a perfect storm that has denied workers and families a secure home. The cost of housing has increased by 30% since 2016 and the cost of renting has increased by 44% in the same period. I first became a public representative in 2016 and do not need a calculator to work out how many affordable houses were built in my area, Dublin Mid-West, since then. It is a big, fat zero.

The Government has broken a social contract with its citizens. Owing to systemic failures by successive Governments, we do not meet the housing needs of citizens. Young people are particularly affected by the Government's failures. An ESRI report found that young people are experiencing wage stagnation and warned that the housing crisis is exacerbating their situation. It is predicted that this will be the first generation who will never be able to own their own homes unless changes in housing policies occur that put people before vultures. Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael created the housing crisis and are not equipped to fix it. The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again looking for different results. It is time for change, and Sinn Féin will deliver it. We will deliver housing that everyone can access.

See this speech in context