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

As the Taoiseach announced the latest Housing for All, there was an emergency and there is still an emergency - in fact, a more profound emergency. As we speak today, house prices and rents are up and, very sadly, we will hear again that the rates of homelessness are up. The way in which the Taoiseach tries to dodge and evade answering questions by pointing to others, as though he was not the Taoiseach - and I know he has limited time left but he is still the Head of Government - as though he was not the Government and did not carry the responsibility to tackle this emergency, is quite astounding. There will be fewer than 500 cost rental homes this year. That is all. It is good news for those who have those tenancies - let me state that plainly - but it is not enough. That is fact. The report published this morning says it all. The average cost of renting in this city this year is €28,000.

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