Housing assistance payment limits
Deputy Hearne said Simon Communities’ report showed zero homes available within HAP limits and accused the Government of worsening the crisis. The Tánaiste said the report was serious, welcomed the advocacy work, and committed to reviewing HAP limits in the first half of the year.
Tá an ghéarchéim thithíochta uafásach.
Today, it has been revealed by the Simon Communities Locked Out of the Market report that there are zero properties available within standard housing assistance payment, HAP, limits. This is the first time any Simon Communities report has shown there is not one property available. Where are people to go and how are they supposed to afford the extortionate market rents? It is an emergency, but the only emergency action the Government is taking is to allow landlords to hike up rents. In my constituency, I have people coming to me all the time who cannot afford the rent and are stuck in homelessness. We saw emergency action during Covid. We saw the eviction ban and short-term lets being used to house people. Will the Tánaiste take emergency action? Will he raise the standard HAP rates on an emergency basis so that people can afford a home?
Comment on this
I thank Deputy Hearne for raising this. I genuinely thank Dublin Simon Community for the work it does on behalf of our country and homeless people and its advocacy. I note and take seriously the report; I do not dismiss it. I was also looking at some figures which show that 272 new HAP tenancies were created in those 16 areas in December, but I do not take from the seriousness of the issue the report highlights. The Government's commitment is to review HAP limits and levels, to have that completed in the first half of this year and then to act on it.