Martin Browne (Tipperary, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

As was said about the Social Welfare Bill, I hope we are not in the Minister's head full-time. It seems to be an affliction on that side of the House where it talks about Sinn Féin all the time. Maybe the Government should worry about its policies for a while. While the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage may not think there is a housing emergency, for many people across Tipperary and the nation, the crisis is very real. Daft.ie has revealed the average listed rental cost across the country has hit €1,688, with a record increase of 4.3% on the previous quarter and 14.1% over the year. In County Tipperary, like other counties, there are people living in cars, tents, or sleeping on couches. The average rent increased by 12.8% since this time last year to an average monthly rent of €1,133, on top of an inflation rate of over 9%. One of the latest revelations from Tipperary is that, for 661 people in the Clonmel area, there are only ten vacant homes and only one is ready to let. That is a failure on the Minister's part and an emergency. On daft.ie, there were 17 places listed for rent in all of Tipperary this morning, with eight in the south and nine in the north.

People who have approached me include a teacher living in a car, others living in a shed and a man who dropped into my office after spending a night in a tent. There are also people living in scandalously poor conditions with mould and damp. They find themselves having to stay there and keep quiet because there is nowhere to go. I know of one case of a young woman and young child living in these conditions. After over two years with the current Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, we have 10,000 homeless people and 4,000 of them are children. That is a failure on the Minister's part and it is an emergency.

The issues do not just include rents. The costs facing young people are plainly out of reach for many. We need 20,000 public homes a year but the Government cannot deliver half of this. As Deputy Kenny said, the Minister blames Opposition parties for objecting to all developments. I ask the Minister to inquire about my town, Cashel, and which councillors objected to a scheme to build 146 houses.

A crisis needs a crisis response. Our public housing targets would deliver 20% from existing, vacant and derelict stock, and reform the approval process to accelerate the delivery of public houses. If the Minister is not ready to listen to us, then listen to the Raise the Roof rally in Dublin on Saturday, 26 November, at 1 o'clock. I encourage people to come out in significant numbers for that.

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