Thomas Pringle (Donegal, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Acting Chair for the opportunity to speak on this motion regarding housing targets and regulation. I thank Labour for bringing the motion forward. I support this motion and its calls for the Government to increase its housing targets significantly. It is clear that Housing for All, the Government's strategy to address the housing crisis and end homelessness, has been an incredible failure. Since the publication of Housing for All, the number of homeless families in the north west alone has risen by 85%. It is a shocking figure. It demonstrates the absolute incompetence of the housing Minister, as does the fact that a record number of homelessness was recorded in the month of January, with a total of 13,531 people accessing emergency accommodation nationwide.

This cannot go on. The situation is absolutely dire and it somehow keeps getting worse, while the Minister hides behind Housing for All and housing targets that are set so ridiculously low that they would not make a dent on the level of homelessness that we are currently seeing, even if they were met.

Monthly homeless figures published by the Government only show a fraction of this issue. The report show individuals and families provided with emergency accommodation by local authorities. They do not show the hidden homeless - people sleeping rough, living in cars and sofa surfing, people in refuges escaping domestic violence, people sharing with family or friends, or those living in houses unfit for habitation. All these people are not reflected in the Government's numbers. The situation is, sadly, much worse than it seems.

Perhaps we are looking at this in the wrong way. We in opposition look at the housing policy as being a way to provide houses for people who are homeless. It is what one would think it would be but maybe when one looks at it from the Government's point of view that the housing policy is providing money for the private developers, it is working well. From the Minister's and the Government's point of view, housing policy is working because they are not about providing housing for homeless people. The Government is about providing money to developers for developing, etc. From that point of view, it is working well for Government and Government is providing everything it wants to do in relation to housing. One thing is certain - it is not about solving the homeless crisis and providing housing for people. If it was something the Minister was interested in, he would increase the income thresholds for housing because there is a huge number of people in Donegal on an income of between €32,000 and €80,000 who cannot provide housing for themselves, will not be able to provide housing for themselves and are left to the private market in terms of providing for housing. When those people come into my office, I say there is nothing I can do for them and that they are on their own because that is Government policy and it wants to keep down the figures to make it look like it is meeting the need. The first thing that would happen if the Government increased the income limits for getting on the housing list is that the housing list would go through the roof and the Minister would have to explain that away. It is easier not to let those people onto the list in the first place and then they do not have to be counted by anybody. That is what is happening in terms of housing.

We, in opposition, are probably all guilty of looking at it from the wrong angle. We are looking at it from the angle of people who need houses and people who are homeless as that has been the measure of housing success. That cannot be from where the Government is looking at it because if it was, it would be admitting that it was an absolute failure.

In 2023, North West Simon provided homeless prevention support for over 220 households of 266 adults accompanied by 207 children. I cannot imagine how the absence of a home and this instability is impacting these children. These people in this situation often get lost in a discussion about numbers.

This week, the UN’s economic, social and cultural rights committee expressed concern over the persistent gap between demand and supply in Ireland's housing market and the increasing cost of rents. This gap is disproportionately affecting the most marginalised and disadvantaged in our society.

The committee ruled that the lack of social housing was "not adequate" and that "the persistence of homelessness" in Ireland was concerning. It called on the Government to ensure "adequate access" to culturally appropriate accommodation for Traveller and Roma communities and suggested increasing local authorities' culturally appropriate housing stock. It also recommended steps be taken to avoid all forms of discrimination in the provision of accommodation.

Sadly, these recommendations have been put forward time and again by Traveller groups. Last Friday was Irish Traveller Ethnicity Day. In celebrating the culture and the formal recognition of the ethnic group, it is also important to consider all the ways the community has been failed and left behind.

The Housing (Traveller Accommodation) Act 1998 obliges local authorities to draw up five-year Traveller accommodation programmes. However, since its introduction, local authorities have consistently failed to complete these programmes. In addition, year after year, local authorities across the country have failed to draw down funds earmarked for Traveller-specific accommodation. The fact that this has become the norm for many local authorities is disgraceful and shows that Traveller-specific accommodation is not being prioritised in the way it should be. The allocated budget for Traveller-specific accommodation is already far lower than it should be and for it not to be drawn down completely is unacceptable. Many Traveller households are forced to live in unsafe, unsanitary or overcrowded conditions and I would urge the Minister to work with Traveller organisations in addressing this very serious situation.

It is time for meaningful action, not only from the Government, but from the Opposition as well. Opposition parties, including ourselves, have put forward many housing motions over the term of this Government but sadly many of them have failed to include targets for Traveller-specific accommodation or recognise the dire living situations that many Travellers are forced to endure. I hope that in trying to create a more fair and equitable society for everyone in this country, we ensure nobody is left behind in the future. That is what a housing policy should do. It should provide for Travellers, Roma, homeless people, which it is not doing, and those people who are in dire need of help and support rather than provide for builders and developers in the private sector to make money.

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