Sinn Féin’s Pauline Tully TD has criticised the government over the continuing spiralling of house prices and rents across Cavan and Monaghan.

Teachta Tully blamed the actions and inaction of the government for the fact workers and families cannot afford to buy or rent.

Teachta Tully said:

“Fine Gael has been in government for 13 years. 

“In that time, homeownership has collapsed and 40% of people in their 30s are still living in their family homes. 

“We know that, as of March, nearly 14,000 people were accessing emergency accommodation, with more than 4,000 of these children.

“Due to the actions and inaction of the current Government, workers and families cannot afford to buy and they cannot afford to rent. It is a vicious cycle. 

“In my constituency, house prices have risen by 6% in Cavan and 10% in Monaghan over the past year. 

“Similarly, year on year, rents for new tenancies have increased by 20.9% in Cavan and 13.4% in Monaghan.

“That leaves a range of people who cannot afford to rent and cannot afford to buy.

“I come across people all the time who are trapped in rental situations. They cannot show consistent savings because the rent is so high. As a result, they cannot get mortgage approval. They might be able to obtain a deposit somehow, but they cannot get a mortgage. Even though the rent they are paying is considerably higher than a mortgage would be, they are trapped in that situation. 

“Other people I encounter are refusing additional hours of work because they want to remain below the social housing threshold. They know that if they go above that, they will not be able to afford rent. It is not fair.

“In April, the Minister launched what is supposed to become a quarterly housing progress report. In that report, there was no update on social and affordable homes to rent or affordable purchase houses delivered in the first quarter of this year. 

“Sinn Féin has a plan to deliver an affordable housing scheme that workers and families can afford and that will enable councils and housing bodies to build homes that people can buy at or near the cost of construction, excluding the land-related costs. 

“It will be open to those with a gross household income of up to €85,000. Therefore, people do not have to refuse work to stay below a social income threshold in order to live. 

“The housing crisis will only be fixed when the cost of houses and rents are brought down by increasing supply. 

“We are losing our young, educated and skilled staff, especially in the healthcare and social professions – our teachers and nurses – because they cannot afford to live here due to housing.

“It is time for a Government that will deliver genuinely affordable homes, at prices working people can afford. It is time for a Sinn Féin Government.”