Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The scandal relating to defective building blocks with pyrite and mica has devastated the homes and lives of the families affected. This scandal has hit many areas across the State but it is most acute in Donegal, Mayo and Clare. This scandal is a result of the light-touch regulation and reckless practices of the Celtic tiger years. It is not the fault of the families concerned, it is the fault of those who were supposed to have their backs and who were supposed to be looking out for them. These families have been failed by the system and by the State. These people have worked hard and saved hard to buy homes for themselves and their families and to secure for themselves what everyone deserves, that is, a safe, secure roof over their head and a place to call home. Yet, through no fault of their own, they find themselves in a nightmare situation where their houses are literally crumbling around them.

Meeting recently with some of those affected was a powerful and heartbreaking experience. These people are at their wits' end. They are heartbroken. What has happened to them has taken its toll on their family lives and health, including their mental health. Everything many of these families own is falling in around them. They go to bed at night wondering if their gable wall will collapse or if the chimney on their home or a neighbouring home will fall down. Despite everything they have been through, they remain strong and resolute. These are good people and they are determined to get justice. They are gathered outside this building today and they are welcome to Dublin to pursue justice. They deserve and need the support of all of us in this House, including the Taoiseach, me and every Deputy here.

I promised these families we would do everything we possibly can to advance their cause for a 100% redress scheme. Sinn Féin will lay a motion calling for that support before the Dáil tonight to see that these families and homeowners are insured to get 100% redress. That is what they deserve and nothing short of it will suffice. The scheme that the Government previously put in place is not working. It is letting people down. Under that scheme, some families are expected to come up with up to €100,000 or more to contribute to fixing their homes. Who has that kind of money? It is incredibly unfair.

The campaign and demand for a scheme that covers the cost of rebuilding their homes is right and just. Ba mhaith leis na teaghlaigh scéim a fheiceáil a chlúdóidh an costas a bhaineann lena a dtithe a atógáil. Bheadh sé sin ceart. Is é an t-aon réiteach cóir atá ann ná scéim sásaimh 100% a shocrú.

This nightmare needs to come to an end. These families have been failed by the system and by the State and the current scheme fails them again. They cannot be left in this situation. The only fair solution, therefore, is for the Government to deliver a 100% redress schemes and to do so urgently. I ask the Taoiseach directly to give us and them a clear, unambiguous commitment that the Government will deliver a 100% redress scheme.

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