Johnny Mythen (Wexford, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Labour Party for bringing this motion before the House. I have listened attentively to the Government's claims that housing is the number one priority. Nobody seems to know when exactly this revelation appeared before them. One could argue that both Government parties have been in full control of housing for 14 years, yet they have failed to deliver both affordable and social housing on any meaningful scale, missing targets year after year.

Some 15,000 citizens and more than 4,600 children are in emergency accommodation. That is a stain on our nation. I suspect the real hidden figure, if we take the number living with relatives and friends, is at least three times that amount. A radical reset of the housing policy must replace the Government's Housing for All plan, as was recommended by the Housing Commission and the ESRI.

The recent remarks by the Taoiseach, supported by the Minister for Finance yesterday, are very worrying and are reminiscent of the good old days of the Celtic tiger. I refer to the review of rent pressure zones, once again reverting to private developers and speculative landlords and an over-reliance on the private market to solve the housing crisis.

Housing should not be viewed as a derivative or a mere commodity. This is the very reason the housing plan failed in the first place and, indeed, it is what led to the loss of our fiscal sovereignty and the visit of the troika to our shores.

Rents have increased nationally by 40% but the 2% cap in the rent pressure zones has kept the wolf from the door for many families. The introduction of a ban on no-fault evictions served as security for many families who would otherwise have ended up on the emergency housing list. Sinn Féin fully supports the Housing Commission's recommendation to create a housing delivery oversight executive to bring together public, semi-State and private bodies to better develop capital programmes and address the bureaucratic red tape that is causing stagnation in the planning system, resulting in long delays in providing critical infrastructure and much-needed homes.

I cannot overstate the need to build affordable and social housing as quickly as humanly possible. Every Deputy is fully aware of constituents, families and young couples, including in my county of Wexford, who are facing homelessness due to increasing rents, who cannot afford ever-increasing housing market prices and who will never be able to acquire mortgages due to low earnings. Housing should be a fundamental constitutional right. Every citizen should be entitled to a roof over his or her head and to shelter. I hope that in its lifetime, this Government will consider bringing a referendum to the people on the right to housing. I am glad to support his motion. I hope it will be supported by all Deputies.

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