Mary Henry (Independent)

There is a crisis of homelessness in this country. There is a dire need for social housing, but in his budget speech the Minister for Finance did not mention either social housing or homelessness. These are serious issues, but they can be neglected because there is a feeling that there are no votes to be gained from dealing with them. To my sorrow, I find that in some areas in which social housing is to be built, there is a hail of planning objections. I regret that the plans of the former Minister for the Environment and Local Government, Deputy Dempsey, to ensure a social housing component in all new developments were delayed and reversed. It looks as though it will not be as popular as it was previously.