Results 7,381-7,400 of 7,765 for speaker:Maurice Cummins

Seanad: Housing Provisions: Motion. (26 May 2004)

Maurice Cummins: What about social housing?

Seanad: Housing Provisions: Motion. (26 May 2004)

Maurice Cummins: Tough decisions are geared only towards one section of the community.

Seanad: Housing Provisions: Motion. (26 May 2004)

Maurice Cummins: Did the Government build any of them yet?

Seanad: Housing Provisions: Motion. (26 May 2004)

Maurice Cummins: That is another massage figure.

Seanad: Housing Provisions: Motion. (26 May 2004)

Maurice Cummins: I congratulate the PR people in the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, who are doing an excellent job in painting a good picture of the policies the Government is pursuing. However, even they cannot cover up the policy failures in the housing area. It is not possible to make a silk purse out of a sow's ear.

Seanad: Housing Provisions: Motion. (26 May 2004)

Maurice Cummins: I am referring to housing. The abolition of the first-time house-buyer's grant set out the stall for the Government. I heard the Minister say that Governments must make tough decisions. However, the Government always seem to make the tough decisions that hit the poor and vulnerable, and those trying to get on the housing ladder. Those are the types of tough decisions the Government has made....

Seanad: Housing Provisions: Motion. (26 May 2004)

Maurice Cummins: Senator Bannon has outlined realistic policies, the implementation of which would make a real difference to people by helping them to buy their first homes. Fine Gael is often accused of not having policies of its own, but we have policies in this area which are realistic and would prove helpful. I hope the Government will adopt some of them. In 1996, the last full year during which Fine Gael...

Seanad: Housing Provisions: Motion. (26 May 2004)

Maurice Cummins: It is beyond me how young peoples can afford mortgages in this day and age. Even if both partners work, it is difficult and sometimes impossible for many to purchase a property. This is a damning indictment of the policies the Government has pursued. The Minister of State said that funding in the homelessness sector had increased from €12 million to €51 million, which is welcome. However,...

Seanad: Housing Provisions: Motion. (26 May 2004)

Maurice Cummins: The housing statistics bulletin for 2003 states there are 5,600 homeless people. The Simon Community, which does wonderful work, claims this figure is a gross underestimation.

Seanad: Housing Provisions: Motion. (26 May 2004)

Maurice Cummins: It is an absolute disgrace that in spite of the unprecedented boom and growth the country has experienced, there are twice as many homeless persons as there were in 1997.

Seanad: Housing Provisions: Motion. (26 May 2004)

Maurice Cummins: The Government has failed miserably to address housing supply. In the 2002 programme for Government, which seems to be ignored wherever possible, there is a commitment to assisting the voluntary housing sector to ensure that 4,000 accommodation units per annum are provided. As the Minister of State said, just over 1,500 units were provided in 2003.

Seanad: Housing Provisions: Motion. (26 May 2004)

Maurice Cummins: It was another lie and another broken promise. The programme for Government was probably the most deceitful document ever inflicted on the people. It surpassed even the 1977 Fianna Fáil manifesto which plunged the country into near bankruptcy.

Seanad: Housing Provisions: Motion. (26 May 2004)

Maurice Cummins: The 1977 manifesto and the 2002 programme for Government are much of a muchness and a disaster for people on low incomes.

Seanad: Housing Provisions: Motion. (26 May 2004)

Maurice Cummins: The Government's social welfare policy features 16 cuts which hit the same people. The Government prefers to look after developers and the people who benefit from tax incentives.

Seanad: Housing Provisions: Motion. (26 May 2004)

Maurice Cummins: Minister, a wide range of measures is required to address the affordability gap.

Seanad: Housing Provisions: Motion. (26 May 2004)

Maurice Cummins: As long as people listen to what I have to say, I do not mind whom I address. The affordability gap prevents double-income couples buying their own homes. We must find innovative ways to tackle supply and demand issues. We require proper planning and priorities to be laid down to tackle the housing crisis. The Government is stale and lacks a clear policy to tackle these problems.

Seanad: Housing Provisions: Motion. (26 May 2004)

Maurice Cummins: The Government's housing policy record is absolutely deplorable and can only be considered an attack on the poor and the middle classes. People buying holiday homes and investment property appear to be a greater priority for the Government. There were 26,000 people on the housing list in 1996. The Minister of State says there are now 40,000 people on the list, but my figures indicate there...

Seanad: Housing Provisions: Motion. (26 May 2004)

Maurice Cummins: The plans for estates in Ballybeg, Lisduggan and Larchville are before the Minister of State and the money is needed. If we get the money, we will do the work. The Government was remiss in attacking local authority policies. The local authority on which I sat for 20 years had useful, innovative policies at all times to accommodate people on the housing list. That has been the case with the...

Seanad: Business of Seanad. (20 May 2004)

Maurice Cummins: We know what electronic voting machines have cost taxpayers. Could we ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government to come in and explain how much it will cost to store these machines throughout the length and breadth of the country? In Waterford I am informed it is costing in excess of €50,000 per annum to store 174 machines——

Seanad: Business of Seanad. (20 May 2004)

Maurice Cummins: This is the cost to the taxpayer. A serious amount of money is involved. Who is storing these machines? Who is responsible and how much will it cost the taxpayer? I would like to pose these questions to the Minister if he shows his face in the House.