The Irish Independent's View: Politicians' actions will speak louder than words when it comes to housing crisis
The opposition is 100pc correct to highlight government failings. In March 2019, Leilani Farha, the former UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Housing, said: 'Contrary to international human rights obligations, investment in housing in the Republic of Ireland has disconnected housing from its core social purpose of providing people with a place to live in with security and dignity.'
The Raise the Roof protests today will target Government failings and highlight the human toll taken through being unable to rent or buy at affordable rates.
The campaign, which also has the backing of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, wants to see an increase in public housing investment and more punitive taxes imposed on vacancy and dereliction. It has also fought for a re-introduction of the ban on 'no fault' evictions.
Sinn Féin, Labour, the Social Democrats, PBP-Solidarity, several Independent TDs and the Green Party have tabled a motion calling for the implementation of all of the above.
By now, the Coalition should not require a mass demonstration to recognise the risks it is running by not getting on top of the single issue on which the whole country desperately demands more progress. We have reached a moment where only big gestures and bold thinking can restore confidence in its ability to deliver on housing.
Ten years into the housing crisis, it remains the greatest political failure of our time
As targets are continually missed and rents keep rising, a consensus is forming around a view that inaction speaks louder than words.
As Ethel Buckley, deputy general secretary of Siptu, said recently: 'Ten years into the housing crisis, and that crisis remains the greatest political failure of our time. Workers are being priced out of homes or can only rent or purchase with considerable financial burden.'
It is critical that due attention is paid when people say our broken property market must be fixed.
Expecting it to happen immediately is unrealistic, but a show of intent and evidence of total commitment to identifying and implementing vital solutions is not.
Protests matter, though not as much as agreeing on ways to rapidly expand our housing supply. The Government needs to bring the opposition on board so that a national drive to ramp up the construction of affordable homes can be achieved.
As things stand, young people are profoundly disillusioned about their prospects. They are frustrated by repeated speeches from Taoiseach Micheál Martin and Tánaiste Simon Harris about 'challenges'.
Mr Martin said he wants 'courage and ambition' to be matched with careful planning and management on the issue. He must lead by example.
He speaks of taking 'brave and difficult decisions' on housing and in other areas. True, it is a time for initiative and innovation, but for them to be taken and not simply talked about.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Independent
5 hours ago
- Irish Independent
Iranian state TV hit as Tehran calls on Trump to make Israelis halt war
An Israeli strike hit Iran's state broadcaster yesterday, while the head of the UN nuclear watchdog indicated extensive damage to Iran's biggest uranium enrichment plant and Iran called on the US to force a ceasefire in the four-day-old aerial war.
Irish Independent
5 hours ago
- Irish Independent
The Irish Independent's View: Politicians' actions will speak louder than words when it comes to housing crisis
The opposition is 100pc correct to highlight government failings. In March 2019, Leilani Farha, the former UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Housing, said: 'Contrary to international human rights obligations, investment in housing in the Republic of Ireland has disconnected housing from its core social purpose of providing people with a place to live in with security and dignity.' The Raise the Roof protests today will target Government failings and highlight the human toll taken through being unable to rent or buy at affordable rates. The campaign, which also has the backing of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, wants to see an increase in public housing investment and more punitive taxes imposed on vacancy and dereliction. It has also fought for a re-introduction of the ban on 'no fault' evictions. Sinn Féin, Labour, the Social Democrats, PBP-Solidarity, several Independent TDs and the Green Party have tabled a motion calling for the implementation of all of the above. By now, the Coalition should not require a mass demonstration to recognise the risks it is running by not getting on top of the single issue on which the whole country desperately demands more progress. We have reached a moment where only big gestures and bold thinking can restore confidence in its ability to deliver on housing. Ten years into the housing crisis, it remains the greatest political failure of our time As targets are continually missed and rents keep rising, a consensus is forming around a view that inaction speaks louder than words. As Ethel Buckley, deputy general secretary of Siptu, said recently: 'Ten years into the housing crisis, and that crisis remains the greatest political failure of our time. Workers are being priced out of homes or can only rent or purchase with considerable financial burden.' It is critical that due attention is paid when people say our broken property market must be fixed. Expecting it to happen immediately is unrealistic, but a show of intent and evidence of total commitment to identifying and implementing vital solutions is not. Protests matter, though not as much as agreeing on ways to rapidly expand our housing supply. The Government needs to bring the opposition on board so that a national drive to ramp up the construction of affordable homes can be achieved. As things stand, young people are profoundly disillusioned about their prospects. They are frustrated by repeated speeches from Taoiseach Micheál Martin and Tánaiste Simon Harris about 'challenges'. Mr Martin said he wants 'courage and ambition' to be matched with careful planning and management on the issue. He must lead by example. He speaks of taking 'brave and difficult decisions' on housing and in other areas. True, it is a time for initiative and innovation, but for them to be taken and not simply talked about.
Irish Times
11 hours ago
- Irish Times
The Irish Times view on the politics of housing: Government only has itself to blame
The political pressure to make progress on housing is building. A 'Raise the Roof' protest will take place outside the Dáil on Tuesday evening, organised by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions and supported by a range of civic society groups. This will coincide with a joint motion in the Dáil from the Opposition parties – Sinn Féin, Labour, Social Democrats and the Green Party – calling for emergency action on housing. To some extent at least, the Government only has itself to blame for the predicament it finds itself in. It seems that ministers in the last administration believed their own ' PR' not only by accepting assurances from then housing minister Darragh O'Brien that completions last year would be close to 40,000, but also believing that enough was being done to deal with the crisis. The report of the Housing Commission last summer was ignored. The government went into the election arguing that it was on the right track. So where to next? The Government has moved on planning permission rules and also rent pressure zones (RPZs)– the latter announcement apparently not fully thought through, requiring a range of clarifications. The reality is that the RPZ rules have had an impact on supply, but there are a lot of other familiar factors at play too, including infrastructure shortcomings, the cost of building and the planning system. On the latter, the Government will regret that its predecessor only passed the planning act into law in its final days. Ministers can point to the surprisingly rapid growth of the economy in recent years and the influx of foreign workers as one reason for housing pressures. But it has been too slow to react. READ MORE The policy changes sought by the protesters and the Opposition are, not surprisingly, not easily implemented either. Calls to spend more State cash ignore the huge amounts already being directed into housing; additional resources are indeed needed, but the real issue is delivery. Demands for more protections for private renters is understandable – and this vulnerable group does need to be looked after. But marrying this with more supply is the issue. Calls to create a right to housing are well founded, but all sides know the risk that this becomes another empty promise. Perhaps the strongest case of the protesters is the lethargy of the Government in its early months on policy issues. It is only now starting to move on housing and has still to clearly indicate what route it will take. Opposition politicians – and the wider public too – might also reflect on the culture of objections to planning development which are all too common and cross the political divide. If Ireland really sees housing as a crisis, then the comfortable classes cannot continue to seek every avenue to delay developments which may discommode them. If housing really is to be treated as a crisis, then everyone has a role to play.
