In a statement People Before Profit spokesperson and general election candidate, Cllr Bríd Smith, has described the reports that rental property supply is the lowest it has been in a decade a shameful indictment on the government and in particular on the Minister Alan Kelly. Cllr Smith pointed to the failing and the inaction of the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government Alan Kelly as a factor which is contributing the crisis of homelessness in this country.
Cllr Smith said:
“We have a housing crisis in this country which is based around supply and affordability. Rents are going through the roof because the Minister responsible is dragging his heels and failing to act in an effective manner to elevate the problem. The Minister is in fact contributing to this problem by failing to act effectively.
I would echo the recent criticism of the Minister by Fr Peter McVerry. Fr McVerry said the Minister is living in a fantasy world. His allocation of 1,700 houses between now and 2017 are not even going to get near resolving the problem. Fr McVerry pointed out that this will only deal with 2% of the problem.
The average monthly rent in Dublin is €1,300 which is astronomical. How are ordinary working people supposed to pay anywhere near that?
Homelessness is at an epidemic level in this country and we can see that the obvious causes of it are not being addressed by the Minister. We need a radical social housing plan to be implemented now. It is clear now that the Minister is not in control of the housing situation or the homelessness situation and it would appear that he is out of his depth. If he is serious about tackling this problem he must allocate proper resources to tackle the homelessness problem and reduce the cost of renting in this country by providing adequate social housing”.
For more information contact:
Cllr Bríd Smith: 087 909 0166
People Before Profit