Thomas Pringle (Donegal, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Donegal is the forgotten county. I have said this to the Taoiseach many times before. There we are, up in the north-west of Ireland, happy to be living in the most beautiful county in the country but despairing at how we have been treated by successive Governments. The people of Donegal are making their voices heard now. They are making their voices heard here today. They are harnessing the power of social media and media to say the Government cannot ignore them any longer. There cannot be one rule for Dublin homes in the pyrite redress scheme and another for people in Donegal and Mayo whose homes are crumbling with mica. We will not be forgotten and, wonderfully, the public is behind us in our call for no less than 100% redress.

At the end of May, thousands took to the streets of Donegal to highlight the atrocity and injustice being imposed on homeowners in the county. Today, more than 40 busloads of people have come to Dublin to show the Government they will not be forgotten. At the beginning of 2020, the Government launched the defective concrete block grant scheme for homeowners affected by pyrite in Mayo and mica in Donegal. However, it was in early 2014 that the Mica Action Group was formed. It is a lobby group made up of volunteers directly affected by the scandal. For seven years, it has been seeking redress and liaising with local and national government officials. It has been fighting for recognition for seven years.

The Taoiseach's covert mission to Donegal last week and his photo opportunity with some crumbling walls was far too late. Now that our voices are louder, the Taoiseach has to listen. As the Taoiseach knows, access to the defective concrete blocks grant scheme costs between €5,000 and €7,000 but the cost to access the scheme in Leinster is much lower, at €500. Up to 5,700 homes throughout Donegal and Mayo are crumbling away because of the presence of mica in defective concrete blocks. Approximately 1,000 local authority provided social homes in Donegal are also affected. Tenants are paying rent and hoping their ceilings and walls do not fall down on them.

The Taoiseach said he needed to speak to the Attorney General on the next steps.

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