Evictions and housing trauma
Deputy Hearne attacks the rise in notices to quit and says the Government's rental policy has helped vulture funds while worsening family trauma. The Tánaiste accepts there is a housing emergency and trauma, but argues more tenancies and landlords show the market is not collapsing.
More than 7,000 notices to quit were issued during the first three months of this year, which is an increase of 51%. The Tánaiste's response to being challenged on the highest levels of evictions since the Famine was quite shocking and revealing in its lack of concern for the real-life trauma, stress and anxiety of thousands of households, many of them children, families and workers, who were evicted in the first three months of this year. The Government's new rental measures were brought in to benefit the vulture funds and vulture landlords. The Government caused this and allowed them to hike the rents, but refused to give the existing quarter of a million renters any new protections from evictions. Does the Tánaiste accept the Government's policies have caused this and that what we need is an emergency ban on no-fault evictions? How can the Tánaiste stand over it?
Comment on this
He did not even respond in terms of this being trauma and people's lives being thrown upside down - thousands of them. Yet, the Tánaiste says, "Oh well, we will see what we can do." Why will the Government not put a ban on evictions in place?
Comment on this
The Tánaiste says he cares. He says he has compassion. This is what is needed.
Comment on this
I do not accept that at all. What I accept is that we are seeing more tenancies in this country now than we did last year. We are seeing more landlords in the market now than we did last year. Yes, we did see a spike in notices of termination. That is a statement of fact. There are other statements of fact in the report the Deputy has not mentioned, including the very significant-----
Comment on this
Does the Tánaiste accept the trauma?
Comment on this
I absolutely accept that when we live in a housing emergency people experience trauma. I also accept that we need to get private investment in to build houses and that not every house will be built by the taxpayer in this country. Private investment is a really important part of any sustainable housing market. We have a difference of view on that.