Mattie McGrath criticises voucher funds and eviction practices
Mattie McGrath spoke in a bill debate on 25 March 2021, welcoming an extension of time and raising concerns about evictions, voucher funds and housing supply. He thanked the minister for engagement on the Urban Generation Fund and called for accountability over court decisions and bank sales to funds.
Opening and bill support
Mattie McGrath welcomed the extension of time in the bill, saying it was important to end COVID difficulties and to be fair to people. He thanked the minister for a brief discussion about the Urban Generation Fund, noting that St Mell was unsuccessful and that the minister agreed to take the matter to officials and to meet representatives of the Dip Council and the mayor later.
Tenants, landlords and housing output
McGrath said the situation includes some bad tenants and a few bad landlords but emphasised that most tenants and landlords are good. He highlighted long housing waiting lists of around 12 years and warned that a construction clause will see a fall in output - he cited a projected 25% drop in new housing units this year.
Courts, evictions and voucher funds
He criticised how evictions and voucher funds were handled through COVID, alleging an open-door access in the courts for such funds and saying evictions continued despite expectations they would not. McGrath accused banks of selling land to voucher funds that were invited into the country by the Department of Finance and the minister at the time, calling those funds "vultures".
Calls for accountability and strong language
McGrath urged that voucher funds and those he held responsible must be "brought to book", using strong language to describe the economic impact and saying the country was being plundered. He concluded by handing the debate over to his colleague.
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I'm delighted to be able to speak in this bill here today. I want to welcome the extension of time. It's very important that we would end this as COVID difficulties and we would be fair to people as best we can. So it's nothing more than what we should be doing. I want to thank Minister O'Brien for a brief word with him there regarding the Urban Generation Fund. St Mell was unsuccessful for him. He's agreed to look at it to his officials and meet the officials of the Dip Council. And thank you for your engagement on that and wish him well in his in his portfolio as Minister. He understands the fact that he's going to also meet with Mayor Siobhan Ambrose later on when we go through the score sheets and see what went wrong in that area. As regards this bill, look, it's quite clear what's going on. There's some bad tenants and a lot of very, very good tenants. There's some bad landlords and a lot of very, very good landlords. But there is always that percentage of people who abuse the situation. But we've done precious little really as a government, before Minister O'Brien even came in, in the last government, to protect people and make sure that they have certainty and a waiting list of 12 years in places. And now with the construction clause, it's not since I'm meaning to it, that we're going to be down ahead 25% on output on new housing units this year. And then we will see people, even politicians, having the name here now, but picturing three construction workers in getting a takeaway coffee and then brandishing all construction workers as rogues. They're entitled to their coffee. They want to go to work and continue and build and these same people are clamoring for, we're not building enough houses, but you can't have your cake and eat it. You must, you can't make an egg without, you can't make an omni without breaking eggs. And I want to say what's gone on in the courts, all through COVID, especially under one certain female member of the judiciary, I won't mention her, Count Cawola, in fairness, but she has run right and have an open, an open engagement for voucher funds. And evictions going on and people being evicted right through the COVID prison, in spite of we getting insurance, there was no evictions, there wouldn't be evictions. And that they have had an open door access in the courts, the voucher funds. And now the amount of land has been sold off by banks to these voucher funds, who were invited into this country by the Department of Finance, Minister Noon at the time. He said there was good vultures, the only vultures I ever saw this time of year are very pernicious, when they attacked lambs for the barn, when young lambs have been born and their eyes poked at them before they come out, before they get their body onto the earth. And that's the kind of vulture funds we have operating in the banks. And they must be brought to book, because we're plundering and raping our country. I hand it over to my colleague. Thank you.
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