Catherine Ardagh (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

As leader of the Fianna Fáil group, I welcome the Government's decision to increase the rent supplement in line with the confidence and support agreement with Fianna Fáil. It must be noted that it is just one of a suite of measures designed to tackle the housing and homeless crisis. Many families are at risk of losing their homes due to rapidly rising rents and that is the reason Fianna Fáil ensured the Government would increase the rent supplement as a short-term measure. It is the right thing to do, as one of the measures designed to alleviate the housing crisis. The Government's decision to increase the rent supplement in major urban areas such as Dublin will help in the short term. Ensuring that the supplement reflects the reality in the market will also help to stop the practice of illegal top-ups that are putting families to the very pin of their collar. It is important that the law banning landlords from refusing tenants because they are on rent supplement is also fully implemented.

The Dublin local authorities, with Dublin City Council as the lead local authority, in response to homelessness are managing what is a critical and unprecedented situation in relation to the demand for their homeless services on a daily and nightly basis. In April 2016, the Dublin local authorities provided accommodation for 888 families, with 1,786 child dependants. Of those 888 families, 218 families were accommodated in homeless accommodation while 670 families were accommodated in commercial hotels.

I also wish to draw the House's attention to the eviction from a Dublin hotel on 9 June of a young family for drawing attention to the substandard emergency accommodation which suffered from damp and mould to a level so severe that their young children aged from nine months old who were recently out of hospital could not stay in the room. After requesting a change of room and appearing in the media over the conditions, they were confronted by management and the family then received a telephone call from Dublin City Council minutes later to inform them that their room had been cancelled.No alternative accommodation was offered and they have been informed that their contract with the hotel is now terminated.

These types of incidents should not happen. This is a very serious crisis that the Government needs to tackle head on. Each night there are so many children in emergency accommodation, which makes this an unbearable crisis. Even though the matter is talked about in every council chamber every day I feel that the crisis has still not been taken seriously.

The measures announced today go some way towards alleviating the crisis. However, the measures should form part of the overall housing package to ensure supply is increased in the future. The Government should act quickly and ensure that all of the recommendations made by the Oireachtas Committee on Housing and Homelessness are implemented. The Government must also ensure that there is proper investment in housing to ensure that families no longer have to sleep on the streets at night or take the humiliating step of approaching their local authorities to secure emergency accommodation.