Pearse Doherty demands no-fault eviction ban now

Thank you very much, Comhairleach, Tánaiste, today we have the 17th session of the Social Democracy Institute. It is important to note that this is a session after the last election, and it is the right session. We want to have that same session now more than ever. The issues are at a level that we did not reach 25 years ago. There is a lot of work to be done, and there is a lot of work to be done in the next few months. And there is a lot of work to be done now at the level that we reached 25 years ago. And there is a lot of work to be done in the next few months. Tánaiste, today the Oireachtas Committee on Housing has published a major report. And the report makes it clear that the Government isn't doing enough to tackle the housing and homelessness crisis. It calls on you to introduce an emergency response to the crisis, including a ban on no-fault evictions. And it's a call from TDs from all parties, including Fianna Gael and Fianna Fáil. And the Committee is right, Tánaiste, such a ban is needed now more than ever. The situation was bad enough, but your rent hikes legislation has made things even worse. And the consequences of that are plain to see. Rip-off rents have now jumped to their highest levels in 25 years. Homelessness continues to rise, breaking new records every single month. And evictions are now at the highest level since the famine. And as a result of your legislation, we've seen an alarming increase in evictions since the start of this year. So many people and families are now finding themselves in desperate situations, seeking a new place to live. And those who can find a place are facing paying thousands and thousands of euro in extra rent. Those who can't find a place themselves are in awful situations. We're talking about working families with good jobs, sometimes with two incomes. Older people who've paid rent all their lives. Parents are robbed from the security that they need to build a good life for them and their children. Tánaiste, it seems that everybody sees how bad things are, except for your Government. Even your own backbenchers who helped draft this report are now calling on you to act, to reintroduce the ban on no-fault evictions. And if you don't make this intervention now immediately, then the writing is on the wall, Tánaiste. Many more people will be forced to move back into their parents' home, into insecure situations, and even worse, find themselves in homelessness. So there are many steps that we can take to protect people. A ban on no-fault evictions would provide people in housing difficulty with the safety net that they need. It would relieve stress, it would relieve the pressure, it would give them the security that they need. And it's not just Sinn Féin that are urging you to do this, Tánaiste. This is a cross-party call for you to move with urgency and ambition to stem the flow of evictions. You now have an opportunity to make a real difference, because for too long the story of housing in Ireland has been the story of pressure, of stress, of desperation, of hopelessness. But that story can be changed, that tide can be turned. Hope can be restored for people who just want a secure home for them and their family. But you have to start with better decisions. You have to make one of those decisions today, Tánaiste. You have to make that difference. So can I ask you, will you tell people that you will make that decision, that you will reintroduce a no-fault ban on evictions, as has been called for by parties across this House? This Committee's recommendations arise from hearings that were held on 16 December last year. And I would point out that actually a number of decisions and actions have been taken by government since then. In fact, as I look through the recommendations, I'm pleased to say that many are in train or in place. It calls for a greater focus on prevention. It calls for increased funding. We're doing that. The Committee, very importantly, and I think this is something we can all agree on across this House, recommends that the best interests of the child must be a key priority in addressing homelessness. And we agree, and that's why legislation is being brought forward to amend the 1988 Housing Act to ensure that consideration of the best interests of the child is included in the decision-making process on accommodation for households. This is a key ask, I know, of many working with homeless families across the country. I'm also pleased to say, and the report seeks, a child and family homelessness prevention plan. I'm pleased to tell the House today, last quinn-corla, that that plan will be published before the summer recess. I think it's an important piece of work because we don't want to see anybody homeless in Ireland, but we all particularly want to see progress made when it comes to children, of course, in homelessness as well. This is intended to drive a real focus on preventing children and families entering emergency accommodation, but also providing enhanced support for children who do experience homelessness, as well as measures to accelerate exits and to reduce the time spent by children and their families in homeless emergency accommodation. Again, a recommendation in the report too. The Committee also recommends engagement with stakeholders. I genuinely, objectively believe there's never been more engagement, but Government's always open to hearing any ideas across this House in terms of what more could be done in relation to that. I would make the point that since this Committee hearing in December of last year, we obviously saw the legislation come into effect on the 1st of March of 2026. That does put a range of protections in place when it comes to tenancies. As you know, we've extended the rent pressure zones nationwide, including to your own county. They weren't included in Donegal, as an example. They now are. We've brought in six-year tenancies, which I think is really important. And we now actually do live in a country where the majority of tenants in Ireland are covered by an effective no-fault eviction ban. Now, there was a debate in this House as to how to do that right, and there was a debate about making sure that policies didn't result in smaller landlords, someone with one or two houses leaving the market and causing a supply challenge. But it is a statement of fact that there is now an effective no-fault eviction ban in place for the majority of tenants in the country. And that is acting on a recommendation of that report as well. We're also continuing a record level of investment in social housing, with £2.9 billion in capital allocated to support the delivery of social homes. And we will continue to do that. So this is a welcome report. I would just say, and I take the spirit in which the Deputy rightly highlights, the important issue of housing. There is no more important domestic issue. It's not true to say that there's a cross-party report that says the government should bring in a no-fault eviction ban. There's a cross-party report that says the committee urges the Minister to keep all options under review, including an emergency ban and no-fault evictions. Of course, government keeps things under review. But please, let's not misrepresent the good cross-party work that was done in relation to this report. Okay, Dorothy. Tonisha, you can't make up your own facts. Seriously. You've said it twice, that it's a fact that, in effect, the majority of tenancies have effectively a no-fault eviction ban. That's not truth, Tonisha, and I think you know that. This only applies to new tenancies, not existing tenancies, and it only applies to those of large landlords. So please stop making up stuff. I know it's very difficult to defend the situation you find yourself in, but a bit of truth, a bit of honesty would be welcome here in relation to this here. The committee is very clear. Not enough is being done, and we need an emergency response. And you're right, the hearings were held in December, but the committee only lodged their report this morning. And see since then, see since December, what's happened? Rents have continued to rise. House prices have continued to rise. Homelessness have broken new records over and over again. And evictions have gone through the roof because of your legislation that allowed landlords to increase rents over and over and over again. Tonisha, something has to give. You're not listening to Sinn Féin, you're not listening to advocacy groups out there, you're not listening to the people who are under serious pressure in terms of housing. The previous time that you listened to some of your backbenchers, you were saying there is a need for an emergency response now. Now you can shake your head all you want, but the reality is we are seeing more evictions now. We're seeing rents that are at the highest level in 25 years, Tonisha, and you think somehow that everything's rosy in the garden, that you're doing everything you need. There is a need to introduce a no-ban on evictions at this point in time. You need to relieve the pressure, you need to relieve the stress from people, and there are options that you can take. As I said, you can stem the tide now, you can take things that will make a meaningful difference in people's lives. So I ask you again, will you bring forward a ban on no-fault evictions as is recommended? So let me assure you, Deputy, while you can speak for Sinn Féin, you certainly don't speak for Fine Gael backbench TDs or Senators. I speak for the Fine Gael Parliamentary Party. Please, that's Kim Corley. It's not helpful for the people at home or the people in the gallery here. If people shout me down, thank you. The reality is I speak for the government of this house today, and I speak for the Fine Gael Party as its leader. And we will follow our policy agenda, which is clearly published, while you'll come into this house and continue to oppose and object every positive measure we bring forward. Of course the comments I made in relation to no-fault evictions apply to tenancies in place since the legislation came in. How could it apply to anything else? We have put that in since the legislation in March. You know that to be true. And we've also taken a number of other measures, including this week, with hundreds of millions of euro, more than 800 million euro, in fact, through the Housing Activation and Infrastructure Office to help counties right across this country put in place key enabling pieces of infrastructure that are required to deliver more homes. Housing is an emergency in this country. Housing is a real challenge. The cross-party committee have done good work. Don't misrepresent what they've said, though. They haven't said bring in a no-fault eviction ban. They've said keep all things under review. They've made 14 recommendations. Many of them are underway. Many of them merit further consideration. And they will, of course, all be taken very seriously. For more UN videos visit www.un.org