On prevailing side: this member voted with the winning side in 56 of 1,408 decisive votes (14 abstentions excluded). Read it as a government-or-opposition indicator rather than a measure of influence — the figure is near 100% for members supporting the government of the day and near 0% for those opposing it.
This is the point of the site: contributions keep the party held on the day, not the one held now.
| Party | Recorded as | Contributions | Period |
|---|---|---|---|
| SF | Sinn Féin | 2,343 | 2020-03-26 – 2026-10-01 |
Membership spells on record: SF 2016-03-10–2020-01-14 · SF 2020-02-08–2024-11-08 · SF 2024-11-29–present
The figure of 4,000 affordable housing supports is deeply disingenuous because it gives the impression that last year, 4,000 households moved into 4,000 affordable homes. Of course, the Minister knows that is not true because of that 4,000, 2,000 are approvals of the first home scheme, and only about 1,000 of those resulted in purchases-----
-----and none of those homes are affordable. When we actually look at the schemes the Minister directly controls, that is, the delivery of cost rental by approved housing bodies and the Land Development Agency and affordable purchase homes by local authorities, it was about 1,500. That is the number the Minister delivered and increasingly, many of those are not affordable. I have to hand a brochure from North County Homes. The Minister will know it well; it is from his own constituency. That lists all the so-called…
Talking about approvals of homes that in many cases will not be built for one, two or three years ignores the point. The Minister promised to deliver in 2022 just over 2,000 genuinely affordable homes to rent or buy. He delivered half that number. Last year, he promised approximately 3,500 affordable homes to rent or buy. He missed his target by 60%. We might look at the prices from the Land Development Agency in my own constituency in Citywest. Entry-level rents for a one-bedroom unit cost €1,400 and for a three-b…
In Lusk, in the Minister's own constituency, the all-in cost for so-called affordable homes funded through his scheme is €565,000. My question is very simple. There are two schemes the Minister put in place and promised delivery of and on which he is failing. What are those two schemes going to deliver this year? What are the targets? What is the estimated delivery? Are they going to be genuinely affordable?
It does.
They cost €500,000.
That is the all-in cost. The Minister just accepted it.
It is for the people who are looking for the affordable homes the Minister promised.
Therefore, the Minister will meet his targets this year.
He will meet his targets this year is what the Minister is saying.
That is simply not true. Home ownership is falling.
Home ownership is falling and house prices are rising.
Home ownership is falling and house prices are rising.
Home ownership is falling and house prices are rising. That is the Minister's legacy.
Last week the Minister was forced to publish the report of the Housing Commission following leaks to RTÉ. Of course, it is no surprise that the Minister would not want to publish it in advance of the election given its stinging criticism of the Government's record of ineffective decision-making, reactive policymaking and risk aversion - all undermining affordability - a failure to treat housing as a critical social and economic priority, and one of the highest levels of public expenditure for housing yet one of the…
Not only is the Minister's response delusional, but it is positively Orwellian in its attempt to describe a report that is critical of the Government as somehow endorsing it. In fact, the Minister has provoked the ire of one of the commission members, Mr. Michael O'Flynn, who was on the "Today with Claire Byrne" show last week. Not only has he been deeply disappointed by the Government's response, but he suggested that it has insulted the commission by suggesting that recommendations for the radical changes it is p…
The truth of the matter is the vast majority of what is in the report has not only not been initiated by the Government but is at radical variance with it. I will deal with two matters. When the Government was developing the targets for its current plan, it deliberately excluded pent-up demand. When the ESRI undertook its survey to inform the Government's plan, it was not allowed to look at pent-up demand. That is the deficit. Right now, the ESRI is undertaking a similar study. Pent-up demand is not included in tha…
He answers now.
That is right.
Yesterday, the Dublin Inquirer reported that the Dublin Region Homeless Executive is seeking an additional 2,000 emergency beds for people experiencing homelessness here in Dublin. Yesterday, I was in Limerick with my colleague, Deputy Quinlivan. We met with Help the Homeless Limerick, NOVAS and other front-line homelessness service providers. They described a significant deterioration in the homelessness situation in the area with increases in the number of rough sleepers and people seeking emergency accommodation…