Housing Provision Dail Éireann — 2023-03-09 ============================================================ Eoin Ó Broin (SF), Dublin Mid-West The Minister acknowledged that the ending of the emergency ban on evictions is likely to lead to an increase in homelessness from April. In the first half of last year 2,700 notices of eviction were issued and we expect that when we get the figures tomorrow and later this month for the second half of last year the total may be 5,000. Given that our emergency accommodation system is almost at breaking point, what is the Minister's contingency plan to deal with the rising level of presentations, both in terms of preventing people from becoming homeless and assisting people to exit from homelessness? Darragh O'Brien (FF), Dublin Fingal First, we used the pause and the time given through the eviction moratorium to ramp up additional supply. I will give the Deputy some specific figures and while they are approximations, they are close to the verified figures which we will have very soon. In quarter four of last year we delivered about 5,000 new social housing builds. We brought back about 1,500 voids in that period. We have acquired just short of approximately 600 homes, many of them with tenants in situ . We have leased a further 600 homes, particularly focused on those in homelessness or to provide exits for homeless people from emergency accommodation directly into permanent housing. In that period we have also ramped up the capacity in emergency accommodation, particularly in this region, with an additional 500 beds as well as 150 cold-weather beds. It is important to note that the overall delivery last year, as the Deputy knows, comprised 29,851 homes, which was about 5,000 above the target. This represents a very good start for the first full year of Housing for All because we need to ramp up supply across all tenures. We have approved about 1,000 cost-rental tenancies also. More than 500 of those tenancies are in place, with people now living in safe, secure and affordable rental properties. In the first couple of months of this year, although these figures are provisional, we have built 1,800 new social homes. I will go through some other measures that we will be using to provide additional social homes in quarter 1 of this year, based on the Government decision on Tuesday, in my supplementary reply. Eoin Ó Broin (SF), Dublin Mid-West The Minister has his head buried deep in the sand. Last year, by his own admission, he missed his social housing targets by 1,500 units. He has underperformed on his target of 9,000. Interestingly, he has not told us anything about affordable housing. As we know, in his own constituency, the properties in Dun Emer have not yet been purchased and with both cost-rental and affordable purchase, he is way behind target but none of that answers the question. In four weeks' time, because of a decision the Minister has made, hundreds if not thousands of notices to quit will fall due. There is a cliff edge in April. It will then extend to May and June. I am talking to people on the front line in homelessness services and they are telling me that there is no plan for April. My specific question is not what the Minister is going to do in six months or 12 months but what is going to happen in our local authorities and emergency front-line services when the hundreds if not thousands of single people, couples, families with children and pensioners present for emergency accommodation and there is none because of the absence of a contingency plan? Darragh O'Brien (FF), Dublin Fingal Just to remind the Deputy, his parliamentary question does not relate to this at all. The question he tabled makes no reference to what he has raised this morning but I am quite happy to answer because we made the right decision. It was a difficult decision but one that is in the best public interest in the medium term. That is what one has to do in government. One cannot just make populist decisions. One must make decisions that are right, even if they are difficult. I have outlined very clearly the additional capacity and the additional builds that we provided in the fourth quarter of last year. Also, the Government decision of this week permits the ramping up and acceleration of purchases with tenants in situ , with another 1,500 homes for people in receipt of the housing assistance payment, HAP, or on the rental accommodation scheme, RAS, who have received notices to quit. There will be accelerated delivery in that space and should we reach that target of 1,500, more capital will be provided to do more. On affordable housing, as the Deputy knows, we have more than 1,150 first home scheme, FHS, approvals. These are real people and real homes. FHS is a scheme that Deputy Ó Broin railed against and opposed. We have also approved more than 40 schemes across the country through the local authorities which will provide 2,100 affordable homes for people to purchase because we believe in home ownership. Eoin Ó Broin (SF), Dublin Mid-West What the Minister seems to believe in is taking decisions that increase the levels of homelessness across the State. He had a choice. He had a choice on Monday and Tuesday to protect tenants from the imminent threat of homelessness or to support landlords. He took the decision to support landlords. That is fine and that is his position but there has been no additional supply over the emergency ban on evictions period. In fact, the Minister missed the previously promised supply targets. Regarding the tenant in situ scheme, in my own local authority area, in the year since the scheme was opened, there have been three purchases. In the Dublin City Council area, the largest urban area in the country, there have been seven purchases. That is what we are getting because of the Minister's failure to act. With respect to the tenant in situ and cost-rental schemes, all the Minister needs to do is extend the cost-rental equity loan scheme to the approved housing bodies, AHBs, but he has failed to do so. Again, I have a very simple question. In April, when an increasing number of men, women, children and pensioners present to our local authorities, where there is no emergency accommodation, what does the Minister advise them to do? Darragh O'Brien (FF), Dublin Fingal I have answered, very clearly, Deputy Ó Broin's question, albeit not the question he tabled, and am happy to answer it. We have a responsibility to make sure that we work towards a functioning private rental sector. The Deputy knows why the Government took this difficult----- Eoin Ó Broin (SF), Dublin Mid-West What does the Minister advise people to do in April? Darragh O'Brien (FF), Dublin Fingal Do not interrupt----- Eoin Ó Broin (SF), Dublin Mid-West It is a simple question. What does he advise people presenting to local authorities? Darragh O'Brien (FF), Dublin Fingal We have provided----- Eoin Ó Broin (SF), Dublin Mid-West There is no plan for April. Darragh O'Brien (FF), Dublin Fingal Can I be allowed to answer the question? Eoin Ó Broin (SF), Dublin Mid-West That is the question I am asking. What does the Minister advise those families to do? He has not answered that. Marc Ó Cathasaigh (CC), Waterford Deputy, you have already put your question. Darragh O'Brien (FF), Dublin Fingal What I am saying to Deputy Ó Broin---- Marc Ó Cathasaigh (CC), Waterford Please allow the Minister to respond. Darragh O'Brien (FF), Dublin Fingal The Deputy may not want to listen to the answer but I have given him the answer, very clearly. We have ramped up significantly additional accommodation through social housing new builds of more than 5,000 in the last quarter of last year and over 1,800 in the first two months of this year. More than 600 homes have been purchased since July and----- Eoin Ó Broin (SF), Dublin Mid-West Then why is homelessness increasing? Darragh O'Brien (FF), Dublin Fingal For many reasons. It is not as simple as that and the Deputy knows it----- Eoin Ó Broin (SF), Dublin Mid-West What do those families do in April? Darragh O'Brien (FF), Dublin Fingal -----but it does not suit his narrative. Marc Ó Cathasaigh (CC), Waterford Deputy Ó Broin, there is a format for these questions. Eoin Ó Broin (SF), Dublin Mid-West What is the Minister's advice to those families in April? Darragh O'Brien (FF), Dublin Fingal We have made a responsible decision in the interests of the public. Eoin Ó Broin (SF), Dublin Mid-West The Minister has no answer. Marc Ó Cathasaigh (CC), Waterford Deputy Ó Broin, there is a format for this question and answer session and we do not get clarity with interruptions. --- Source: Houses of the Oireachtas. Licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). The Official Report is revised after first publication; the fetch timestamp below identifies the version quoted. Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2023-03-09/debate/main Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:51:41+00:00 Sitting date: 2023-03-09