Michael Collins (Cork South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am back again this week, repeating the same thing over and over here in the Dáil. Last week, I spoke about a family in Clonakilty whose rent had gone up 25%, as did their neighbours’. I spoke about the man who was sleeping in his car in west Cork. I spoke about the number of constituents who are constantly calling into my clinics, trying to find houses and trying to make a home for themselves. We have the young married couples, both with fairly good jobs, who cannot get a mortgage. There is something wrong. They cannot find a house to buy, even if they could get a mortgage.

We need to look outside the box. I know of people who live in log cabins and are happy to do so for a few years, but they are scared that the planning authority will come knocking on the door some day and kick them out. Why not look at the idea of people living in containers? I have actually seen quite a nice set-up in many places but, again, they are afraid of the planning authority coming knocking on the door, which has happened in some cases in west Cork and they have had to pull them down. Beautiful living accommodation, with two containers, one on top of the other, is gone and the person is out on the street, basically.

Again, I want to bring up the issue of planning permission in west Cork, which is such a difficulty for many young people. I do not know what percentage I have been told about in my office but a huge number of people are coming to me looking for planning. These are genuine applicants, young people trying to get off the ground, and they have been refused for the silliest reasons that could ever be known. Some people have just got a site from their mom or dad and that is the one break they get. Then, their opportunity is to go out there and build that dream home for themselves, but they cannot. That is broken for them and they are back into the social housing system again, looking for a house from the State. That is not what they want; they want to go out on their own.

Many houses in small towns and villages in rural Ireland are lying in ruins with no slates or roofs. This is an area that needs to be looked at. Rural Ireland can create major solutions to many of the problems that are out there in housing today but it has never been looked at. It is a sad reflection. Post offices and various important resources in towns and villages are closing because of that.

Sewage treatment is a major issue down in west Cork. Many sewerage systems have never been done in places such as in Castletownshend and Goleen. I could name quite a few.

I only have eight seconds left and I wanted to talk about the county development plan. I will not have time to do so now but it is scandalous the way many places are being cut off in areas that needed zoning.

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