There has been a 47 per cent rise in the number of children becoming homeless since this Government took office, according to Social Democrats TD Cian O’Callaghan.
Deputy O’Callaghan, who is the party’s deputy leader and housing spokesperson, said:
“The latest figures show there are now 12,691 people living in homeless emergency accommodation. Tragically, 3,895 of these are children, while 176 are pensioners.
“The 156 drop from last month, unfortunately, doesn’t mean there was a fall in the number of people becoming homeless. Rather, it represents another failure in the State’s ability to deal with the homelessness crisis.
“The Department of Housing has admitted that the homeless figures have been miscounted by about 300 for some time now. This is the first month that the figures have been adjusted to account for this mistake.
“The grim reality is that homelessness, in real terms, has continued to rise for 19 of the last 20 months under this Government. This catastrophic failure is having profoundly negative impacts on people’s lives.
“The Government need to start treating this crisis with the urgency it deserves. More tenant in-situ purchases is one of the most effective ways to save people from the trauma of becoming homeless, yet the Government’s target of 1,500 for this year is nowhere near what is needed. There were 10,488 eviction notices issued in the first six months of this year alone.
“I am now calling on the Minister for Housing to provide funding for at least 5,000 tenant in-situ purchases over the next year to prevent people from becoming homeless.”
September 29, 2023