Mattie McGrath: Accuses Government of Failing on Housing Crisis
Mattie McGrath criticised government housing policy, arguing it has led to a worsening housing crisis and a surge in eviction notices. He said government measures - including high taxation on small homeowners, regulation and rising material costs - are discouraging housebuilding and harming tenants and ordinary owners.
Main criticisms
McGrath accused the government of failing to build houses, refusing to allow people to build on their own land, and not addressing bedsits. He said the situation has become a growing mess that successive governments have created and that current actions show a lack of will to build public housing.
Evictions and notices to quit
He warned that since a change last April nearly 6,000 people have been issued notices to quit, describing it as a flood of evictions. McGrath said he and others voted against government measures they believed would put people on the street.
Impact on small homeowners
McGrath criticised a 52% tax on homeowners who let properties, distinguishing them from large landlords. He argued ordinary people who rent one or a few homes are being squeezed and that bodies such as DPRTB are perceived as siding with tenants rather than sourcing new places.
Regulation and construction costs
He highlighted regulatory burdens like BER certification and criticised the decision to raise the price of concrete during a housing crisis. McGrath said such measures make building houses less viable and suggested the government did not want houses to be built.
Public confidence and consequences
McGrath concluded that people have lost faith in the government's approach, saying it had gone into a cul-de-sac and urging ministers to "open your eyes, and listen to the people." He described a loss of direction and repeated that more needed to be done to address the housing emergency.
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I am a fan of the left here, of the People Before Profit, because it is a disastrous situation that you have led yourself into, you have gone down to Koola's Act, you will not build houses, public houses, you will not allow people to build houses on their own land in the country, you will not close down all the bedsits, not your government but the previous government, Fianna Fáil or Fine Gael government, it is a mess that you have created and it is getting a bigger mess and a bigger mess by the day, people have been threatened and since the division bed was lifted, last year, last April, 6,000 almost people have been got notices to quit, a flood, we told you that would happen, that is why we voted against, we voted against the government's measures, to not throw people out on the road, but certainly we have to have a balance, we do not have a balance, we do not have a balance, we do have 52% tax on homeowners, I call them, not landlords, I am not talking about the big landlords, the multi, hundreds of profits or units, I am talking about the ordinary people that have houses, that might let, as Deputy Danny Healy Way said, but they won't because 52% tax, and because DPRTB and other agents are out, literally, siding with the tenants always, they should be out there sourcing, and doing these, as Deputy Ray said, and getting places, more houses for people that are idle, and then to turn around, in Northern Ireland, I understand, at 12 weeks, you get to return a local authority house, for the tenant has in the keys to re-let again, what is wrong here, should we have the canteen here, it is closed since July, and you cannot even get it open to feed the people here, the staff and the members, you cannot even do that much in this house, so how are you going to build houses, the people have lost faith in you completely, and complete faith in you, because you just have failed, then you have regulation, BER certification, you have all these certain regulations, and then you put up the price of concrete, so everyone knows that you do not want to build the houses, obviously, because the actions you are taking, you do not want to build the houses, putting up concrete was a daft decision, in the middle of a housing crisis, so you have lost the way, and you are in a cul-de-sac, and you need to open your eyes, and listen to the people. Thank you Deputy, we move now to the Independent Group Deputy, Thomas. Thank you Deputy, Thomas.
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