Bríd Smith warns lifting eviction ban will trigger 'tsunami'
Bríd Smith spoke to amendment number 34 and opposed removing the ban on evictions, arguing the emergency protections were introduced to protect public health during the pandemic. She urged removal of the 10th of August cut-off, sought an extension of the eviction ban to January 2021, and called for retention of subsection 7 covering all tenancies.
Public health concern
Bríd Smith said the eviction ban was originally introduced to protect public health in the middle of a pandemic and warned that lifting it while COVID-19 remains uncontrolled risks new spikes and outbreaks in congregated settings, including schools. She described her intervention as a realism-based warning rather than scaremongering.
Immediate tenant insecurity
She reported receiving daily representations from tenants who are up to date with rent but fearful because their landlords had already issued notices or signalled tenancies would end for sale, family moves or refurbishment. She cited Emmet Court in Inchicore as an example where dozens of families could be displaced for refurbishments.
Amendment demands and legal coverage
Bríd Smith highlighted subsection 7, which she said was agreed earlier to ensure the ban covered all tenancies - including rent-a-room, licensee tenancies, the travelling community and council tenants. She urged deputies to remove the 10th of August date and allow the emergency eviction ban to continue until January 2021 while keeping subsection 7 in the bill.
Warnings to colleagues and parliamentary vote
She warned every deputy that their vote would have concrete consequences, saying the end of protections could open the "floodgates" on evictions and lead to a wave of homelessness. She specifically called on deputies, including those in the Green Party, to consider the impact of their vote.
Housing stock and emergency response
Bríd Smith argued the State lacks the housing stock to cope with a rise in evictions and that ministers will face unmanageable fallout if families are pushed into emergency accommodation. She warned this would put vulnerable people and children at heightened risk during the pandemic.
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I want to speak to amendment number 34 and I want to just you know really emphasise that I think there's something slightly disconnected happening here with the attempt to remove the ban on evictions and as has been previously said the reason the ban on evictions was brought in was to protect public health in the middle of a pandemic so really what has changed we don't know where we're heading with this we don't know yet if there isn't going to be another spike in COVID that will run rampant through all sorts of congregated settings possibly even the schools when they return and this isn't an attempt to scaremonger it's an attempt to be real minister and if you were being real you would recognise that if the emergency period is extended then the provisions in the emergency period should remain and in particular I would argue this one because I genuinely believe and I'm not I'm not just you know picking this out picking this out from my deep and innermost thoughts I actually have people come to me on a daily basis who are so fearful and insecure of the ban on evictions being lifted not because they're in rent arrears quite the contrary they're up to date with their rent they're not actually having a problem with finances it's because their landlord prior to COVID had either issued a notice or had indicated or had indicated that their tenancy was coming to an end due to various reasons possibly to sell to move a family member in to refurbish there's a whole swathe of apartments in Inchicore in a place called Emmet Court which are due to be emptied in order to be refurbished with dozens of families potentially being moved out of them. Now when we were originally debating the bill we put in an amendment to strengthen the provisions that were already in it which was voted on and voted for by your party as well by Fianna Fáil and I'm sure you at the time as an opposition spokesperson on housing and that is the subsection 7 which basically stated that notwithstanding anything else that all tenancies including those which are rent a room which are licensee tenancies a specific focus on the traveling community on council tenants that all tenancies would be covered by the ban on evictions. Now if this amendment falls and the other amendment falls what what will happen today is basically from the 10th of August the floodgates on evictions will open up there will be a tsunami evictions not necessarily on that date but following that date and if we end up in a situation where there's a massive increase in the number of families moving into homelessness children etc moving into homelessness then we're going into a very dangerous situation in the middle of a pandemic and I think that there's something kind of pandemic and I think that there's something kind of missing from your brain if you really think that this is acceptable it is not acceptable to do this to people it is not acceptable to put them through this fear and insecurity and the potential of having to go into an emergency accommodation while the while we still haven't suppressed the the the COVID-19 virus and so I think it's really really serious and every deputy in this house needs to really consider what button they hit today because when you hit that button you're opening that tsunami come August on many many families who are already terrified of what the consequences could be and it just doesn't make sense because as Minister for Housing you're going to be faced with the fallout from that and you're not going to be able to cope with it just like the last government because of the the type of housing policy they have adopted they were not able to cope and are not able to cope with an emergency and a housing crisis where people are being pushed into homelessness on a daily basis you don't have the housing stock to provide for people who are going to be evicted and what you're doing is you're giving yourself more problems but you're also more importantly putting the population at risk and some of them the most vulnerable members of our communities you're putting them back at risk and their children you have no right to do this and like I say I repeat every deputy and particularly those in the Green Party really need to consider what button they push when they vote on this because it is outrageous to even contemplate the idea that landlords could evict after the 10th of August on all sorts of grounds and you're focusing on the question of arrears fair enough but it goes way beyond that and we spelt it out in subsection 7 and that's why we have this amendment in remove the date of the 10th of August allow the emergency period for a ban on evictions to continue to January 2021 and also allow the subsection that we have inserted with your support with your party support at the beginning of this crisis to remain in the bill thank you deputy
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