News

The government is not a mere bystander in this crisis – it must play an active role The government has no coherent plan to increase the number of apprenticeships in key trades in the construction industry, according to Social Democrats Housing Spokesperson Cian O’Callaghan. “Taoiseach Micheál Martin has encouraged young people finishing their Leaving Cert […]

At every turn, the Minister for Housing has put the interests of big developers ahead of those struggling to buy an affordable homes It is utterly unacceptable that thousands of affordable homes will be lost because of an exemption for developers contained in the Minister’s new housing plan, according to Social Democrats Housing Spokesperson Cian […]

This is a crisis that will only be solved with urgent action and ambition The Government’s new target to provide just 240 Housing First tenancies per year is not good enough, according to the Social Democrats Housing Spokesperson Cian O’Callaghan. “Tonight, more than 8,000 people will sleep in emergency homeless accommodation. This includes 930 families […]

The reality is this government has just one overarching idea to solve the housing crisis – increase exorbitant house prices even further It has taken more than a year in office for Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien to publish a housing plan that is short on both ambition and imagination, according to Social Democrats Housing Spokesperson […]

Purging tents may disappear homeless people from the streets, but it does nothing to address the underlying problem The proliferation of tents in Dublin is not a sign of the city’s “edginess”, but a sign of the government’s failure to tackle our housing and homelessness crises, according to Social Democrats Housing Spokesperson Cian O’Callaghan. “Speaking […]

Dublin is now the most expensive city in Europe in which to build Breaking the cartel on development land is the key to tackling sky-rocketing house prices, according to Social Democrats Housing Spokesperson Cian O’Callaghan. “According to the CSO, house prices rose by 6.9pc in June – the fastest level of growth in two and […]

In 2005, almost 600 people took up apprenticeships to become a brick layer – this year, that figure is just 63  The government has failed to address a chronic skills deficit in the construction industry, according to Social Democrats Housing Spokesperson Cian O’Callaghan. “Prof John Fitzgerald has warned the government will have to choose between […]

While the Minister dithers, the crisis deepens The government’s failure to tackle the rental crisis means rents have continued to surge, according to Social Democrats Housing Spokesperson Cian O’Callaghan. “Today’s daft.ie report reveals the abject failure of this government to tackle the rental crisis. Rents climbed by an average annual rate of 5.6pc in the second quarter […]

It is clear the Government’s policies are failing renters New research from the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) shows out-of-control rents are unsustainable and unconscionable, according to according to Social Democrats Housing Spokesperson Cian O’Callaghan. “Research by the RTB shows rents are out of control. Half of all renters pay more than 30pc of their take-home […]

The planning process must not be short circuited Following the announcement that the government is to replace the Strategic Housing Development (SHD) process with streamlined arrangements for large-scale residential developments (LSRDs), Social Democrats Housing Spokesperson Cian O’Callaghan said: “It is vitally important that the Government learns lessons from the failed Strategic Housing Development process. These […]

Several privately-run emergency accommodation centres were operating until recently without fire certs The Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) should conduct independent inspections of all homeless services, according to Social Democrats Housing Spokesperson Cian O’Callaghan. The recommendation is contained in an Interim Report on Homelessness, published by the Oireachtas Housing Committee today. Deputy O’Callaghan said: […]

Serious questions must be asked about whose interests are being served by this Bill Billed as this government’s landmark piece of housing legislation, the Affordable Housing Bill falls significantly short on several fronts, according to the Social Democrats Housing Spokesperson Cian O’Callaghan. “The Government’s Affordable Housing Bill is flawed on a number of fronts. The […]

This is a moment of truth for the Green Party in Government Plans for cost rental housing have been distorted by a Minister who can’t see beyond private interests, according to Social Democrats Housing Spokesperson Cian O’Callaghan. “The Government is stretching the concept of cost rental to breaking point. A progressive vision for a new […]

Affordability must be linked to income and ability to pay The absence of a definition of affordability is a major gap in the Affordable Housing Bill, according to Social Democrats Housing Spokesperson Cian O’Callaghan. “It is remarkable that the Government’s Affordable Housing Bill has come to the Dáil this week without even a basic definition […]