7 July 2020
By Elaine Murphy
elaine@TheCork.ie
The Cork South Central TD for Sinn Fein
Sinn Féin TD Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire has urged the Government to listen to workable solutions from the opposition, that can see tens of thousands of affordable homes built.
The Cork South Central Deputy was speaking during a Dáil debate on a Sinn Féin motion tonight.
“People have spent years of their lives, waiting. Not only waiting on Council housing lists. But waiting for an affordable housing policy, that can work for them. Having your own home, a permanent place to live securely, is so instrumental to peoples’ lives – People cannot wait any longer. “
“Every week people contact me, who cannot afford a mortgage from a bank but don’t qualify for Social Housing. For those people there are few solutions.
It is impossible for many people to save for a mortgage and rent in Cork City. Average Rents are 1300, to 1,400. You cannot afford that and be able to save.”
“The Fianna Fáil housing Minister promises us affordable Housing, at last, but during the last Government, every year, they promised us they would get a housing budget out of Fine Gael, and each year they failed.”
“That Government failed to deliver a single affordable house under any Government scheme. The programme for government does not contain any affordable housing definitions, price points or targets. It is a repackaged commitment from the 2016 programme for government.”
“Affordable cannot be just a label, it has to be meaningful, it has to bring housing within the reach of people who cannot afford it.
“Recent governments have totally failed to do that.”
“The motion here before us shows how this can be done, how we can deliver homes for people who are currently locked out of the housing market. Sinn Féin is the only political party to publish a detailed, costed policy on affordable housing. Our housing spokesperson published an affordable housing draft circular that would deliver affordable homes to rent and to buy on public land. This motion is based on that circular.
“I urge the Minister don’t oppose this for party political reasons, and implement a policy that can work”