Results 761-780 of 5,655 for speaker:Thomas Gould

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Discussion (13 Jun 2024)

Thomas Gould: On another issue related to-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Discussion (13 Jun 2024)

Thomas Gould: That is acquisitions.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Discussion (13 Jun 2024)

Thomas Gould: Cork County Council is refusing to put a lady into emergency accommodation because she lost her tenancy through addiction. It turns out that she had been abused by her partner. He has since gone into prison and she has gone into recovery. She is a year into recovery and is trying to get her two children back. She cannot get them back because Cork County Council is refusing to put her into...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Discussion (13 Jun 2024)

Thomas Gould: People who are in recovery should be supported by their local authority, especially when it is a battle every day to stay in recovery. This woman is trying to access her children.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Discussion (13 Jun 2024)

Thomas Gould: She had a house and lost it because of her situation.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Discussion (13 Jun 2024)

Thomas Gould: She has applied now but it could take up to six months.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Discussion (13 Jun 2024)

Thomas Gould: My point is that if the Minister were to direct local authorities to work with people who are in recovery-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Discussion (13 Jun 2024)

Thomas Gould: I will take that up and will tell the woman in question that I raised this case today. I will look at the response. If I have to contact the Minister-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Discussion (13 Jun 2024)

Thomas Gould: In a seven- or eight-week period at the start of this year, 31,000 bids were made on 145 properties in Cork city and county. That goes to show the level of the housing crisis in Cork. People contact me at 12.05 a.m. every Thursday. The houses come up at midnight. People send me messages or emails, which is fine. People are desperate and are logging on at 12.01 a.m. There were 31,000...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Discussion (13 Jun 2024)

Thomas Gould: People bid every week so it is not 31,000 people but 31,000 bids. People are bidding on properties every week and not getting them. Some 145 units received 31,000 bids. The crisis in Cork is unbelievable. The Minster talks about targets but his targets are unrealistic and are not meeting the level of demand. I will make a suggestion that I have made numerous times to Cork City Council...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Discussion (13 Jun 2024)

Thomas Gould: The Minister is saying that for 13 years when Fine Gael was in government, its housing policy-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Discussion (13 Jun 2024)

Thomas Gould: The Minister said nothing was built for ten years. Those were the Minister's words. He said there were ten years of undersupply. There were ten years of Fine Gael undersupply.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Discussion (13 Jun 2024)

Thomas Gould: I am conscious of the time limits.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Discussion (13 Jun 2024)

Thomas Gould: I have two questions. I support the roll-out of cost rental but in Cork, 32 properties were available for cost rental and 900 people applied. That means 868 people or families did not get a property. Every week, people are devastated because they cannot get cost rental, affordable or social housing. There is a problem in Cork with Uisce Éireann's inability to deliver clean water to...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Discussion (13 Jun 2024)

Thomas Gould: I ask the Minister to take up the matter.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Discussion (13 Jun 2024)

Thomas Gould: Unfortunately, Senator Cummins might not know. I will explain how it works.

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (13 Jun 2024)

Thomas Gould: Last week, I was contacted by a constituent who had received a letter from Cork City Council stating it had no emergency accommodation. All it was short of saying was that there was no room at the inn and people should go out to the stable. The crisis in emergency accommodation and homelessness in Cork is now so bad there is nowhere to put people. I received an email from a husband and...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (13 Jun 2024)

Thomas Gould: I asked about the homeless. These people are homeless today, not in 16 months' time.

Committee on Drugs Use: Citizens' Assembly on Drugs Use: Discussion (13 Jun 2024)

Thomas Gould: I thank the representatives for a great piece of work. It is a very complicated piece of work on the part of everyone who was involved in the citizens' assembly. Sometimes, citizens' assemblies can be used to tackle very complex questions and maybe give the Government cover when it needs to deal with those questions. There are 36 recommendations. The committee now has a job of work to do...

Committee on Drugs Use: Citizens' Assembly on Drugs Use: Discussion (13 Jun 2024)

Thomas Gould: I thank the Leas-Chathaoirleach. I apologise, as I had to step out for a few minutes. To go back to comments made about the new drugs strategy not coming out until 2025, is this not a kick in the teeth to everyone who is involved with drug treatment or with helping people in addiction and recovery and even to the citizens' assembly itself? This is the type of attitude the Department, led...