3 March 2025
By Tom Collins
tom@TheCork.ie
The government must immediately develop a family homelessness strategy and reintroduce a no-fault eviction ban, according to Social Democrats TD Pádraig Rice.
File photo of Deputy Padraig Rice
Deputy Rice, who represents Cork South-Central, made his comments following publication of the latest homelessness figures.
“The figures show that nationally there were 15,286 people living in homeless emergency accommodation at the end of January. Shamefully, 4,603 of them are children. These are the highest homelessness numbers in the history of the State.
“In Cork city and county, there were 611 adults listed as homeless, in addition to 199 children throughout the South West region, which also takes in Kerry.
“These unacceptably high numbers continue to be a stain on society and are a damning indictment of failed housing policy by successive governments.
“Both the Housing for All plan and new programme for government commit to the Lisbon Declaration goal of ending homelessness by 2030. However, recent comments made by Housing Minister James Browne suggest that the government is already rowing back on this commitment – just weeks after taking office.
“The homelessness U-turn is just the latest in a long line of broken promises on housing, such as Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael’s spectacular failure to deliver the 40,000 homes they claimed would be completed last year.
“The Social Democrats are calling on the government to urgently develop a family homelessness strategy, and reinstate the no-fault eviction ban to protect renters.
“Homelessness is a human tragedy. It should not be tolerated in any properly functioning society.”