29 September 2024
By Bryan McCarthy
bryan@TheCork.ie
Labour Party Dáil Candidate for Cork South Central, Cllr Laura Harmon, slammed the continued inaction on vacancy and dereliction in Cork city and beyond and said that a new voice is needed to give new solutions to the housing hoarding underway that is damaging Cork’s social fabric.
Cllr Peter Horgan, Cllr Laura Harmon; Frank O’Connor and Jude Sherry at the housing meeting hosted by Cllr Laura Harmon Thursday evening in Douglas Community Centre
“People have had enough of dereliction and vacancy in our city, in our communities and across Cork. It is an insult to people who are at risk of homelessness and to those of us struggling to buy our own homes to see properties lying empty across Cork City,” said Cllr Harmon, speaking at a public meeting on housing in Douglas Community Centre.
“The current Government seem happy to allow housing hoarding to continue unabated, because property prices continue to rise and benefit those with property portfolios. I am speaking for a generation who are not only locked out of the housing market, they are locked in to a never-ending cycle of rents spiralling out of control and insecurity of tenure. That has an impact. It has an impact on mental security, on physical safety and on how a society grows.”
“Tinkering at the edges in the budget next week won’t do, we need radical reform and that only comes with new voices calling for radical solutions in Dáil Eireann. Homes must be brought back into use rather than hoarded.”
The meeting was held as the latest residential property price index, compiled by the Central Statistics Office (CSO), indicates that property prices increased by 9.6 per cent in the 12 months to the end of July.
Cllr Harmon reiterated that:
“We urgently need to focus on three key areas: affordable housing, security of tenure for renters, and a more ambitious public housing programme. This Government’s current housing policy has let down an entire generation. The promise of affordable housing is meaningless when house prices and rents continue to soar. We must take bold steps to build a real public housing programme – one that addresses the scale of the crisis.
“The next Government will need to invest in a radical, realistic public housing programme. We need to ensure that local authorities are fully resourced to build homes, and that we prioritise long-term affordability and security of tenure for all renters. This Government has failed – it’s time for a new approach.”
The meeting in Douglas heard from housing campaigners Jude Sherry and Frank O’Connor along with local Labour City Councillor Peter Horgan.