Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)

Last week, the Government brought forward a plan, the net effect of which will be to cause rents to rise across the board. One particular group who will be affected by this are students. Having said initially the Government would have their backs, it is now clear it does not have their backs because those renting in the private sector will suffer, just like others, as landlords can seek market-rate rents. Now it has this plan for State-backed designated student accommodation. It seems it intends to pack students in like sardines in a can, with shared bedrooms, shared bathrooms, communal kitchens and so on and so forth. It will be lessor accommodation and still very high rents. What does the Government have against students? Why is it determined to put them and their families on the hook to be ripped off?

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