Ivana Bacik (Dublin Bay South, Labour) | Oireachtas source

The Taoiseach has given me indicators of progress, but that is no answer to the 182 additional people in homelessness in the last month alone. This has a real-life effect on people. My office is in touch with a mother of three who has a newborn baby. She is a housing assistance payment, HAP, tenant who is in fear of eviction. She is sleeping on the couch in her rented apartment while her baby sleeps in his pram because they have no space. They are in fear of losing even the limited space they have. Therefore, the Government’s policies are not helping her and they are not helping renters.

We have welcomed proposals from the Government that would genuinely increase supply. We supported the Land Development Agency, LDA. However, we are asking those in government to take on board the constructive measures we proposed, such as our renters’ rights Bill, that would provide better security to renters, like that mother of three and the thousands of people who are increasing in number every month, despite the Government’s policies and, in some cases, because of them. Let me remind the Taoiseach that in October 2022, the Minister of State, Deputy Burke, said that the temporary ban would allow the Government the respite space to: "address core underlying issues driving our homelessness levels [by providing] more emergency beds, tackling vacancy, using modular homes and improving allocations and relettings to make the most of existing stock". Where are those measures now? Can the Taoiseach say that we will not see a further increase in next month’s homelessness figures?

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