Joan Collins (Dublin South Central, Independents 4 Change) | Oireachtas source

The number of renters being obliged to leave their homes is staggering. Last year, 3,038 households renting were served a notice to quit, mainly because the landlord was selling. This is the highest number of tenant evictions to take place in a single year since the foundation of the State. The number of families facing eviction has continued unabated into this year.

Renters are living in fear and insecurity. They are terrified of losing their home and facing the impossible task of finding somewhere else to rent. A quarter of all children are growing up in an insecure private rental sector. That is 281,000 children. For a child, stability and security are fundamental to enable them to develop and grow.

I have two examples of families who came to my constituency office last week. There was a young couple with one young child who got the go-ahead to self-accommodate. The woman was on the phone ringing the hotels around Dublin city. Councillor Pat Dunne was on the phone to the family support unit. She eventually got a room that was available and the family support officer agreed. However, the hotel priced the room at €460 a night, without even breakfast. The officer refused to pay that amount of money and said it was above the amount they could afford.

Another woman with two teenagers will be homeless this week. Councillor Pat Dunne contacted the family support unit, which replied that the person had notified the unit last month. They were eligible for homeless HAP and the family support unit continued to say that she stated the need for two bedrooms. It advised that in emergency accommodation only one bedroom would be provided, if even one was available on the day, as its service was currently at capacity. There was no availability in the hubs. It had three other families on top of these cases, who were resorting to sofa surfing and outstaying their welcome. Families are splitting up children among friends or family. The numbers presenting are greater than the numbers leaving the system at the moment.

Given the prices and unavailability in hotels, bed and breakfasts and hubs, my fear is we will have families back sleeping in cars or going to Garda stations. We advise people who come into us before they actually leave to overhold if they have nowhere to go, and that is stressful in itself for families. On the radio, one man said he was advised to go to a Garda station.

The housing crisis is scarring a generation of children. Hundreds of thousands of children are growing up in this country not knowing what is like to live in a stable, secure and safe home. In May of last year, official figures showed 928 families and their 2,148 children were homeless. In March of this year, that number rose to 2,811 children, which is a 37% increase in homeless children.

It beyond time for a real housing emergency response from the Government. One major response is the reinstatement of the eviction ban for two years and, at a minimum, to introduce a rent freeze. How does the Government propose to support these families and resolve the crisis, not in the future, but now?

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