Martin Kenny (Sligo-Leitrim, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I wish the Minister well in his post . I commend my colleagues on bringing forward this motion. The tenant in situ scheme, as many have said, worked very well for many people who were under serious pressure. Since last summer, however, we have seen decline. Now, it has ground to a halt. Many people in my constituency have been affected. I am aware of the case of a young woman who has four children. She is a nurse. Due to the fact that her children are small, she cannot go to work. Her husband works in the fire brigade in our town. They are living in a rented house and have received a notice to quit, which is valid. They are going to have to leave the house. They can find nowhere else to go. The tenant in situ scheme is the only option they have. Up to now, they have been told that it is not open and that there is nothing for them. I respect that the Minister of State was talking about a circular coming out. Why is that taking so long? Where is it? Where is the sense of urgency to deliver for people? Why have local authorities not been clear? The Minister of State indicated that the Government will bring clarity. What is it taking so long to provide clarity? Why delay and delay? Why can we not have it now? Why can people not know where they stand? Why can local authorities not know how much money they will have in order that they can purchase houses and take people out of their misery?

What is happening is hugely stressful. Dozens of people across my constituency are affected. I live in a rural area that does not have the same housing pressures as many of our urban areas. I know of dozens of cases where people have received notices to quit and where the local authority is prepared to buy the houses involved. However, they have not had from the Minister the clarity that might allow them to do so.

This is what we need to do. The Minister needs to support the motion. The Minister of State moved an amendment to the motion. On the basis of what usually happens, this means the Government, in some backhanded way, is going to oppose the motion and go off and do its own thing anyway. What the Government has done up to now has been a failure. I ask that the Minister does not continue with that failure. He is new to the position. I ask him to start as he means to go on and show that he is about something different that will deliver for the people who need delivery. Too many people are in too much stress, and this Government is letting them down.

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