Mairéad Farrell (Galway West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The Simon Community's report entitled Locked Out of the Market was published today. It again shows that there are zero rental properties available that would be affordable for people on HAP. According to the latest report from the RTB, rents of existing tenancies have risen by 7% and 12.6% in the past year. I do not need to read reports to know that housing is completely unaffordable for the people of Galway because I see it every week in my clinics. Galway City Council is so overwhelmed by people presenting as homeless and looking for homelessness support that it is turning people away because it does not have the ability to take more people in. Its emergency accommodation is full and has been full for some time. I hope the Minister knows that and is doing something about it.

In two instances,people who are working full time and are outside social housing or emergency accommodation support and are funding themselves within homelessness came to me recently. They are funding themselves by paying for a hostel one night and staying on somebody's couch the next night. This is totally unacceptable and should be seen as such but, unfortunately, during this Government's tenure, it has become the norm. That is not normal.

I am increasingly seeing people who are retired or hitting retirement age and are falling into homelessness. One person who contacted me is paying €200 per week in rent. This man is hitting retirement age and his social welfare payment is €195 per week. Those sums do not add up. This is on the Minister's watch.

The Government has delivered zero affordable homes in Galway city. Since 2019, even before the Minister took office, we were promised an affordable housing unit estate in Galway city but we still do not have it.

That is not just good enough. It is not good enough for people in Galway who want to be able to buy their own home. That is why so many people are falling into homelessness when they are outside the supports they can get from this Government. The Minister cannot seriously state he is doing enough to provide affordable housing when it is evident from the people of Galway city that that is just not the case.

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