Labour demands urgent action on housing disaster

• Labour brings motion on housing crisis to the Dáil

Labour Leader Ivana Bacik TD today slammed lack of Government action on the housing crisis in the Dáil today. Labour will be bringing a motion that demands immediate action to address Ireland's housing crisis. 

Deputy Bacik said, 

"With skyrocketing rents, soaring homelessness, and insufficient social and affordable housing, the government's inaction cannot be tolerated any longer. Tomorrow Labour will bring a motion before the Dáil demanding action. 

“Government's failure to build an adequate number of homes and set ambitious targets for social and affordable housing is pushing thousands of families into housing insecurity and homelessness. It's time for decisive action to put an end to this crisis.

"We cannot continue to allow landlords to exploit tenants with exorbitant rent increases and arbitrary evictions. Labour’s Renters Rights Bill introduced in 2021 would have provided the necessary safeguards to ensure that every tenant has the right to stable and affordable housing, but has not been progressed by Government. Although the Taoiseach has said that Government won’t oppose the Labour motion tomorrow, this is an empty gesture unless we see the Government proceed to take meaningful action on a range of measures to increase the delivery of homes.

“Despite the urgent need for regulation, the European Commission's obstruction is hindering efforts to control the proliferation of short-term lets, such as those found on platforms like Airbnb. With over 18,000 entire homes listed on Airbnb compared to a mere 2,000 on Daft, it is clear that action must be taken to prioritise long-term housing solutions over short-term profit.

“Labour proposes the establishment of a State Housing Construction Company through the LDA to significantly ramp up the delivery of public homes. By increasing the delivery of social homes to 12,000 per year and providing 10,000 affordable homes for rent or purchase, Labour aims to address the root causes of the housing crisis and ensure that everyone has access to safe and secure housing.

"The time for half-measures and empty promises is over. We call on the government to implement emergency measures to protect renters by ending no-fault evictions, and freezing rents. Every person deserves the right to a home they can afford, and it is our duty to make that a reality."