If these figures represent success for the Minister’s plan, one wonders what failure would look like?
There has been lots of bluster from the Housing Minister on the progress he is making in housing – but very little evidence of any delivery, according to Social Democrats Housing Spokesperson Cian O’Callaghan.
“The latest progress report for Housing For All has revealed little other than stasis and missed deadlines. The Minister’s shared equity scheme has been further delayed – despite his disputed contention that it is central to addressing endemic affordability issues – while his much-vaunted plan to boost the use of existing planning permissions is also nowhere to be seen.
“If the public is looking for a real housing progress report – all they need to do is look at monthly daft.ie housing reports and CSO housing and homelessness figures. These reveal that the supply of rental accommodation is continuing to dramatically shrink while rent is skyrocketing wildly. Meanwhile, house prices are continuing to surge by approximately €100 a day as prices rose by 14.8pc in the 12 months up to January.
“Homelessness, which had decreased during the pandemic when the government imposed an eviction ban, is also climbing back to previous record levels. Nearly 9,500 people are now in emergency accommodation, up 4pc in just one month.
“If these figures represent success for the Minister’s plan, one wonders what failure would look like? It is clear that Housing For All is not working and will not work. The Minister needs to go back to the drawing board, before it is too late. Every day that he delays is another day when more and more people are locked out of a home – to either rent or buy.”
7 April, 2022
Ends