Eoin Hayes (Dublin Bay South, Social Democrats)

I will start by paying tribute to a good friend of mine who passed away suddenly this month a year ago, after I was elected a councillor. There is a memorial service for him this weekend. He was a member of the Social Democrats and we served on the national executive of the party together. He was born in Britain of Nigerian and Ghanaian descent and he was deeply committed to making this island of ours better. His name was Kodzo Selormey and he was a patriot in an era when people who lay claim to that word have no sense of its real meaning. I wanted to honour his memory today at the close of this Dáil term because it is likely I would not be speaking here in the people's Parliament today but for his hard work and friendship and the spirit he shared with all of us in the Social Democrats to make this a country for everyone.

I was deeply concerned last week, listening to the chairperson of ALONE, Seán Moynihan, speaking about the housing crisis and the extent of its effects on older people. So much of the discussion around housing focuses on the typical young couple stuck renting or in their childhood bedroom unable to get on the ladder. Knowing many of those people personally, I expected to hear those stories when I entered politics. What shocked me, however, was meeting people since I entered public life in their 40s, 50s and 60s in terrible and hopeless circumstances paying extortionate rents with no prospect of ownership.

The latest census shows an 83% rise in renters over the age of 65. Some 42% of all older people renting face significant stress from renting in the private sector due to concerns about the instability of their housing. We know from the number of renters in their 40s and 50s that this will only increase.

I recently spoke with a constituent in his 60s living in a studio apartment who was deeply worried about the proposed changes to the rental protections and what they might mean for him as he approaches retirement age. I say "retirement age" and not "retirement" because he is now convinced he will never be able to retire. He will not be able to afford his rent on his pension and is terrified of the hikes to come from this Government's policies. He has been told to deplete his savings, so that he can access social housing. Is this what we are telling people now? Are we asking people who have worked their whole lives who do not have an asset to their name to squander what little they have saved so that we can create a generation of destitute pensioners on housing assistance payment, HAP, and on housing lists?

I heard from another older couple in my constituency dealing with a devastating cancer diagnosis and a progressively worsening prognosis when they were dealt with yet another blow in the form of an eviction notice. Can you imagine what it is like to deal with the enormous challenges of such a diagnosis arriving precisely at the time that you are told you will lose your home? I spoke with another older couple who are dedicated to helping the most vulnerable people in our community in a local hospital and doing this while caring for their son with a developmental language disorder. They suffered a no-fault eviction by their previous landlord and their rent for a two-bedroom apartment doubled overnight. Their savings are now draining away, as they rent at the expense of their future and the future of their child.

The story that shocked me the most on the campaign trail was that of a professional woman in her 50s with a well-paid job in an American multinational whose extortionate rents have left her and her family with no prospect of homeownership in Dublin.

What began as a singular crisis in housing is now resulting in a cascade of social calamities, a catastrophe that affects everyone in society, and none more than people who are already vulnerable and marginalised and bear the brunt of pre-existing social problems. What do I say to these people? How do I tell my constituents that the Government has sacrificed them on an altar of greed? How do I explain to them that the Government's housing policy will not save them, nor will their pension, nor will the private market on which the Government is so reliant? What hope can the Minister of State give them now in their moment of despair?

See this speech in context