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Will the government allow people be charged exorbitant rents to live in glorified sheds? This government’s answer to the housing crisis is to move generation stuck at home from their parents’ box room to a shed in the back garden, according to Social Democrats Housing spokesperson Rory Hearne. “It is reported today that the government […]

The Social Democrats will bring a motion before the Dáil on Wednesday (February 19) calling on the Government to introduce a range of measures to address the housing and rental crises. The motion proposes the closure of loopholes that allow investment funds to aggressively avoid tax; a 100 per cent stamp duty rate on the […]

It is deeply troubling that the Taoiseach appears to be blissfully unaware of EU funding streams that could be accessed by the State to build affordable homes, according to Social Democrats acting leader Cian O’Callaghan. “The Government’s latest plan for housing is nothing more than recycled Celtic Tiger-era policy – namely, one that offers tax […]

Calls by the Taoiseach for more incentives for private investment in the rental sector show this Government is prepared to double down on years of failed housing policy, according to Social Democrats TD Rory Hearne. Deputy Hearne, who is the party’s housing spokesperson, said: “Fianna Fáil claims it is the party of home ownership and […]

It is utterly shameful that people feel the need to sleep in their cars overnight to have any chance of buying a new home, according to Social Democrats TD Aidan Farrelly. Deputy Farrelly, who represents Kildare North, said: “More than a dozen first-time buyers slept in their cars last night in the hope of securing […]

As a matter of urgency, we now need the former housing minister, the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste to appear in the Dáil to answer questions about this fiasco There is a desperate blame game in government to evade responsibility for misleading the public about the number of homes that would be delivered last year, according […]

The new Minister for Housing must introduce emergency measures to tackle homelessness, according to Social Democrats TD Rory Hearne. Deputy Hearne, who is the party’s new housing spokesperson, said: “Figures published today show there were 14,864 people living in homeless emergency accommodation at the end of December. Shockingly, 4,510 of them are children. “While the […]

New figures released by the Simon Communities of Ireland highlight the serious challenges faced by those who are reliant on the Housing Assistance Payment (HAP), according to Social Democrats TD Rory Hearne. Deputy Hearne, who represents Dublin North-West, said: “In its latest quarterly ‘Locked Out of the Market’ report, from December 2024, the homeless charity […]

A new report from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) provides some worrying insights into how the housing crisis is impacting young adults in Ireland, according to Social Democrats TD Rory Hearne. “The latest results from the ‘Growing Up in Ireland’ project show that 69 per cent of 25-year-olds still live with their parents. Among those, […]

Repeated claims by the previous government that up to 40,000 homes would be built in 2024 have been exposed as pure fiction by Central Statistics Office (CSO) figures published today, according to Social Democrats TD Rory Hearne. “The CSO has confirmed that a total of 30,330 homes were built last year – a decrease of […]