Traditionally, December is the time of year when we think, in particular, of those who are homeless and, more specifically, those citizens who are sleeping rough. We know from last week's homelessness figures that there are now more people homeless in the State than ever before. We also know that the official figures actually understate the reality of homelessness across society. The rough sleeper count, published yesterday, shows a 40% increase in the number sleeping rough since March, which is shocking. It is no exaggeration to say hundreds of thousands of people across society are affected by the housing crisis. Up and down the country, families are worried about whether they will have a roof over their heads come January. People in the private rental sector are being hit time and again with rent increases which are still exorbitantly high, while long promised social housing is being constructed at a snail's pace. House prices are out of control and, for young people, owning a home is a pipedream.

The Taoiseach's response is to stick with the plan. It may not have occurred to him, but his plan is not working. In fact, he is failing spectacularly. Last Saturday thousands of people took to the streets of this city to tell him that. I think it is time he listened to them. Last week the Central Bank stated to would-be homeowners who wish to get out of the high rental trap to wait and hang on for new homes to be built before trying to buy. That would be prudent and worthy advice if houses were coming on stream and people were in a position to actually save a few bob. Week in and week out, the Taoiseach and the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government and their colleagues state ad nauseam, both here and elsewhere, that people should simply wait, that the houses will arrive, yet we continue to witness homelessness and the housing crisis. We have highfalutin guarantees that new homes will sort everything out, but that they will only arrive at some undefined point in the future.

The crisis is real. It is in the here and now. Frankly, people are fed up waiting for the Taoiseach to get his act together. They are being screwed, day in, day out, with runaway rents and it seems the Government is incapable of taking meaningful action. The Taoiseach seems to specialise in empty promises. We need something tangible that will benefit the people who are struggling and need a break. I put it to the Taoiseach that he should do something decent and constructive to cut people a bit of slack. I suggest the introduce a three-year rent freeze and temporary tax relief for renters with immediate effect.

We are approaching Christmas time and the holiday season and people are looking forward to the Christmas holidays and spending time with their families, perhaps at home near the warmth of the fire. Of course, when one thinks about that, one's thoughts inevitably turn to those who are less fortunate, those who do not have a home to go to, those without shelter who are exposed to the cold. That is why the figures for rough sleepers produced yesterday were very disappointing. They show that 156 people were sleeping rough on the particular night.

It is not the highest ever, by any means. It was higher a year ago and, in fact, it was higher four years ago. It represents an increase on the previous count in September.

What do we want to do? We want to make sure people have access to emergency accommodation this Christmas. Now that beds are available for everyone who needs them, nobody has to sleep rough. That is why we have set aside €60 million in the budget for additional investment in emergency accommodation. The first step is to get people into emergency accommodation. After that, more permanent accommodation can be found for them. An extra 203 beds will be put in place between now and the end of the year. In fact, 51 of them are already in place. The provision of 203 additional permanent beds and 130 contingency beds will ensure there is emergency accommodation for everyone who needs it this winter.

We are continuing to work with the Peter McVerry Trust and other charities to advance the Housing First programme, which is all about getting secure tenancies for people who have been rough sleepers and are now in emergency accommodation. When they are in secure tenancies, they will be given all the additional supports they need to hang on to their homes. As the Deputy will be aware, rough sleeping is a complex social problem and is not just an issue of housing. As it often involves issues like addiction, mental health and physical health, it can sometimes be hard to get people to come in and therefore it can be hard to help them, even though we do our best to do so.

In terms of supply, I do not think it is a case of promises anymore. The figures on supply are very positive. According to the most recent set of numbers, 5,000 new houses and apartments were built in Ireland in the past three months. Between 18,000 and 20,000 new homes have been built in Ireland this year. Those are not just figures, as we can see by turning back to the theme of Christmas, which was raised by the Deputy. This Christmas, approximately 20,000 people and their families will sit around a Christmas tree in new homes that did not exist this time a year ago. It is possible that 60,000 or 70,000 people will spend this Christmas in a house or apartment that was not built this time last year. We are going to need to ramp that up more and more next year until we get to the kind of figure - 30,000 or 40,000 - that is indicative of the level of housing construction that will be needed every year if we are to get on top of this crisis.

The Taoiseach's party has been in government for more than seven years. For the purposes of clarity, the theme I raised was not Christmas so much as the theme of a housing crisis and a homelessness crisis over which the Taoiseach and his colleagues have presided. People took to the streets in vast numbers on Saturday. I am sure all of us are aware that it is not easy to mobilise people. The very clear message being sent by the thousands of people who took to the streets on the brow of Christmas is that the Government is failing and that they want it to change tack and to be imaginative, decisive and brave. I think it would be wise to listen to that message. I am very familiar with the Housing First approach, which was mentioned by the Taoiseach. I have been informed by Deputy Ó Broin that the Government is planning to cater for 200 people, when in fact the need is somewhere closer to 3,000. That is a metaphor for how short the Government has fallen in terms of need and public expectation.

Thank you, Deputy. Time is up.

I would like the Taoiseach to address the question I asked about the possibility of a rent freeze. I put it to him again that there is a need to adopt the proposal known as the Focus amendment to deal with the issue of landlords seeking vacant possession to sell houses and homes over the heads of tenants.

Please, Deputy. Time is up.

This is one of the main contributing factors, if not the main one, to homelessness and family homelessness in particular. I have mentioned two concrete, innovative, brave and decisive things that the Taoiseach could do if he were minded to get a grip on this situation.

Time is up, Deputy.

Can we have a straight answer on the rent freeze as well as on the amendment to the law that has been proposed and with which the Taoiseach is familiar?

Time is up.

It has been known as the Focus amendment since it was advanced by Focus Ireland in the first instance.

The Deputy is correct when she says that we have been in office for more than seven years. However, she did not mention that we spent the first five of those years putting this country back on track. Perhaps she would like people to forget, or not to know, that we spent five years getting the public finances back in order, reversing some of the awful cuts that were made in previous years to welfare and to people's pay and salaries and dealing with enormous levels of unemployment.

A set of figures came out today which shows that the rate of unemployment in Ireland is now at 5.3%, the lowest in ten years. It is an achievement and those of us on this side of the House are very proud that we have got to the point where the rate of unemployment is at a ten-year low. We spent the first five years really putting the country back together, getting the economy working again, getting people back to work, restoring their incomes and giving them hope again. We have spent the past two years or perhaps a little more dealing with many of the legacy issues caused by the crisis. It was a seven-year period during which the construction sector was dysfunctional and did not build any home and the banks were unable to lend either to builders or people who were seeking mortgages.

On the question of rent tax relief, it is not a proposal we are supporting. We have an alternative proposal in the Finance Bill. Rather than just having income tax cuts for people who are renting, we are making them for all workers because others struggle with other bills, not only those who are renting. There are also people who are struggling to pay their mortgage, save for a deposit or with childcare costs, for example. Rather than giving tax relief to one group which is the Sinn Féin proposal, we will give it to over 1 million people, which is nearly everyone who is working. I am disappointed that Sinn Féin is going to vote against it.