Any chance the Ministers for Housing and Social

Protection might do their fucking jobs, to house the

homeless people in Ireland

Homeless crisis leads to war of words in Dail

Thursday, May 25, 2017
The Tnaiste Frances Fitzgerald has described as
'unacceptable' the fact that homeless families were
referred to Garda stations and had to sleep in parks this
week due to a lack of emergency beds.

Her comments came as the Government and Fianna Fil

united this lunchtime to vote down a bill put forward by
Solidarity-People Before Profit calling for emergency
legislation to tackle the homeless crisis.

Frances Fitzgerald said the Government was taking every

initiative possible to deal with the housing crisis and this
week wasn't reflective of a normal one.

The comments came after seven families failed to find

emergency accommodation on Tuesday night, leading four
to sleep in public parks.

In the Dail PBP TD, Eoin O'Broin, said the failure to deal
with empty units was the government's biggest failure.
"There are 183,000 vacant homes across the state. 40,000
in Dublin. That's 24 vacant homes for every adult and
child in emergency accommodation ... That is Enda
Kenny's legacy.

Meanwhile, the housing minister has said a new national

plan to deal with the country's vacant homes will be
published "within days".

Simon Coveney said the strategy would make a "real

impact" in the housing crisis.
A woman, whose family was unable to get any emergency
accommodation on Tuesday night, has said the situation
has left her and her family heartbroken.

Cheryl Barnwell said the present system is no way for

families to live and said the proposed family hubs would
not be sufficient because "they are just hotels, with the
hotel name taken off it".

Cheryl told Today with Sean O'Rourke that she felt

everyone had a right to their own home and privacy.

She said that she has worked since she was fourteen and
explained that her family became homeless 7 months ago,
after her landlord decided to stop renting to Dublin City
Council.

Until then, she said, she had worked full time and she and
her partner had paid the equivalent of a mortgage in rent.

Cheryl said she had to give up her job because it is too

difficult to do everything while also searching for
accommodation on a daily basis.

On Tuesday night, she said rang around forty hotels and

B&Bs between 9am and 6pm.

She then rang the Dublin City Council self accommodation

line, who advised her to contact Focus Ireland, who in turn
advised her to attend a Garda station.

Cheryl said that she later went to a Garda station where

she was told that, unless they were arrested, they could
not sleep in a cell.

She told Sean O'Rourke that the family stayed in their car
until midnight, when they received a text from the head of
inner city helping the homeless.

She, her partner and two sons then spent the night in his
office.

She described how she spent her days ringing places for
accommodation, while also trying to care for her two sons.

Anthony Flynn, the chief executive of Inner City Helping

the Homeless, has said Tuesday night was one of the
worse he has seen, in four years of homeless services.

Mr Flynn, who put Cheryl and her family up in his office on

Tuesday night, said he rang over 55 hotels between
midnight and 1.30am and not one was able to
accommodate Cheryl and her family.

He told Sean O'Rourke that the family hubs, proposed by

Minister Simon Coveney, is a re-categorization of hotel
accommodation and described it as a 'whitewash.'
A woman, whose family was unable to get accommodation on Tuesday night,
has said the situation is heartbreaking.

Cheryl Barnwell said that this is no way for families to live and said the
proposed family hubs are not sufficient because they are just hotels, with the
hotel name taken off it.

She said that everyone should have their own home and privacy.

Cheryl told Today with Sean O'Rourke said that she has worked since she was
fourteen and explained that her family became homeless, 7.5 months ago,
after her landlord decided to stop renting to Dublin City Council.

Until then, she said, she had worked full time and she and her partner had
paid the equivalent of a mortgage in rent.

Cheryl said she had to give up her job because it is too difficult to do
everything while also searching for accommodation on a daily basis.

On Tuesday night, she said rang around forty hotels and b and b's between
9am and 6pm on Tuesday.

She then rang the Dublin City Council self accommodation line, who advised
her to contact Focus Ireland, who in turn advised her to attend a Garda
station.

Cheryl said that she later went to a Garda station where she was told that,
unless they were arrested, they could not sleep in a cell.

She told Today with Sean O'Rourke that the family stayed in their car until
midnight, when they received a text from the head of inner city helping the
homeless.

She, her partner and two sons then spent the night in his office.

She described how she spent her days ringing places for accommodation,
while also trying to care for her two sons.
Anthony Flynn, the chief executive of Inner City Helping the Homeless, has
said Tuesday night was one of the worse he has seen, in four years of
homeless services.

Mr Flynn, who put Cheryl and her family up in his office on Tuesday night, said
he rang over 55 hotels between midnight and 1.30am and not one was able to
accommodate Cheryl and her family.

He told Today with Sean O'Rourke that the family hubs, proposed by Minister
Simon Coveney, is a re-categorization of hotel accommodation and described
it as a 'whitewash.'
The time and effort being spent on sourcing these hubs, he said, could be
spent sourcing houses and apartments for families.

https://soundcloud.com/rte-radio-1/cheryl-barnwell

Poll reveals most people don't think Govt doing enough to tackle
rents and homelessness

A homeless family of seven living mostly in one hotel

bedroom are to sue the Minister for Housing as well as a
local authority to decide if they are entitled to a particular
standard of accommodation,
The family, including a baby born into homelessness and
four other children under five, have been in ten different
temporary accommodations in four years, the High Court
heard.

This would almost certainly have a detrimental effect on

the childrens development and the parents' ability to
provide a stable family environment, according to an
independent social worker consultant who assessed the
family.
During visits by him to the family last month, their 25.9
square metre hotel room resembled a childrens hospital
ward. The children's health problems included croup,
asthma and various infections, some also exhibited
behavioural issues and the parents suffered stress-related
illness.

While the family were allocated two hotel bedrooms, those

are not adjoining and are five rooms apart, he noted. The
family were sleeping and living in one of the rooms with
the other used mainly for storage of toys and other
possessions. The room where they live has a double bed,
single bed, sofa bed and a portable cot.

This arrangement will become very problematic as the

baby grows as space for her to crawl and walk is not
available.

Studies showed children living long term in temporary

accommodation have considerably more respiratory
infections, hospital admissions and developmental delays
than children living at home.

The fact they are not permitted to cook means, apart from
a hotel breakfast, they eat a lot of fast food, he said.
It was concerning babys bottles and foods were not
allowed to be kept in the room and no small fridge is
provided by the hotel. It was completely unrealistic the
mother would have to ask staff every time she needed
access to the babys bottles.

The hotel is located on a very busy road with the nearest

park about two kilometres away and while the children
sometimes played on the hotel corridors, the hotel had
said children are not permitted use public area of the
premises for recreation.

The parents, both from the South Dublin County Council

area and in a relationship for a number of years. They
have three children together while the two oldest are the
mother's.

They previously lived in private rented accommodation

outside Dublin but returned to their home area after
becoming homeless in early 2016. They are on the
Council's housing list.

They were evicted from other homeless hotel

accommodation at an hours notice three days before
Christmas last, days after the youngest child was born.

They had been placed there by the Council in September

2016 and allege the eviction was without specified
reasons but a council official referred to a complaint by the
premises owner to the Council the father put a sock over a
smoke alarm in their room.

The Council later alleged the family were subject of

"multiple warnings" regarding their behaviour at that hotel
and a "credible threat" was made to the general manager
of the premises on December 21st 2016.

Their solicitor David Joyce said the family got no

opportunity to address the complaints and the Council
breached its duties by revoking their accommodation
before identifying other alternative accommodation. They
slept on a relative's living room floor until they got other
accommodation through Focus Point and have been in
their current hotel since February.

They took proceedings against the Council aimed at

securing accommodation appropriate to their needs and
ensuring they cannot be evicted in the future without
specified reasons.

Today their counsel Cormac O Dulachain SC said, given the

Council's position concerning the scope of its obligations,
he would be seeking to join the Minster for Housing to the
case.

Mr Justice Seamus Noonan, who earlier noted the case

may have implications for other families in similar
circumstances, adjourned the matter to Thursday.
The highest number of rough sleepers was recorded in
Dublin last night according to Inner City Helping Homeless.

Three Inner City Helping Homeless (ICHH) teams found

that 173 people were sleeping rough.

They said that 133 were male, 38 were female, and 2 were
children.

ICHH have said that they have seen an increase in those

presenting as rough sleepers over the last few months, in
particular an 18% increase in a six week period.

Speaking today on the figure, ICHH CEO Anthony Flynn

stated: "This is a concerning and worrying increase, the
number of those sleeping rough is consistently on the
increase month on month.

"The figure is disappointing to say the least. A

consolidated effort from all agencies is now required and a
full review of how service is implemented is warranted
immediately. We now have children presenting on the
streets with parents because of the lack of resources.

"Only last night a family with two young children had to

sleep on an office floor because the DRHE could not
provide a hotel. Bed closures in Wolfe Tone Quay have not
helped he situation. The situation is out of control and
requires an immediate reformation of the homeless
summit.

"Enough money is being spent to provide service that is

clearly not hitting the ground. The Minister needs a full
revaluations of the situation and he needs it now," he said.

The majority of us believe the Government is not doing

enough to solve the housing crisis, according to a new
report from the Simon Community.

It shows 75% of those surveyed think politicians are not

trying to make rents more affordable.

Seven in ten people also expressed their concerns about

the rate of homelessness in Ireland over the past number
of years.

Spokesperson Niamh Randall said: "Particularly at the

private rented sector and homelessness, and what we
found was that 75% of people believe the Government is
not doing enough to keep rent affordable.

"70% believe the Government is not doing enough to

protect those who are renting and 72% are really
concerned about the rates of homelessness increasing due
to rising rents and reducing supply.

"So here we see public opinion is ahead of political

opinion, demonstrating the real urgency on the ground."

Its too early to say whether recent Government attempts

to fix the housing crisis will work. In the meantime, many
people are still suffering,
 Jenna Foley, with her daughters Kaylee and Chloe, one of
the first families who will move into Cork city council's
Sheridan Park development in Togher

SKY-HIGH rents, unaffordable house prices, unprecedented

numbers of homeless families and an all-time low record
of social housing builds.
These are some of the characteristics that mark so-called
solutions to help solve Irelands housing crisis that has left
ordinary families in a state of stasis, in poverty, and in
many cases, without a roof over their heads.
Families without homes are being treated like second class
citizens, according to frontline agencies.
There are exceptional amounts of money going into
government promises to solve the housing crisis but little
sign of relief for those renting, buying or relying on state
support for a home to live in. It is a national shame.
Property problems have plagued this country and its cities
for years. The property boom helped bust the entire
nation. And still, years later, we have yet to formally
regulate and allow families the courtesy of normal lives
under a roof.
A new generation now look hopelessly on (many have no
choice but to leave their communities or areas) at this
tragedy.
And it is a tragedy that people face massive rents and
therefor cannot save for a home and in worse situations
are priced out of the rental market and so become
homeless.
The vicious housing crisis circle will only profit and benefit
those who have no interest in a modern, properly working
society, namely ruthless landlords, funds and builders.
The rest of the country is at the mercy of an uncontrollable
market that is out of control once again.
A determined Simon Coveney has vowed to fight this crisis
head on and plans to try to fix the broken housing and
rental sectors.
The Housing Minister, has set an number of ambitious
targets, these include:
Putting an end to the use of emergency accommodation
such as hotels for homeless families by the end of June
Doubling the number of new home builds to 25,000 by
 2021
Limiting rent increases by setting a cap of 4% for annual
rate hikes
Making up for years of funding gaps for social housing
These are grand visions, backed by specific deadlines and
targets, and overseen by his officials in the Department of
Housing. In many cases, it is too early to say though if the
plans are working.
Many of the multi-annual plans are only unfolding or
beginning. Rents were only capped for Dublin and Cork in
December and number of other areas in January. Rates
have rocketed elsewhere since.
So-called rapid builds, to give immediate solutions for the
homeless, have only been completed in Poppintree,
Ballymun. Just 22 units have been completed, despite
proposals for hundreds across Dublin and elsewhere.
Equally, the rate of social housing completion is slow. Only
652 new social housing units went up last year.
Two thirds of the solutions delivered for social housing
came through housing assistance payments.
Critics would say Coveney is missing his mark. Activists on
the ground, including housing agencies, say any results
will take a while.
Nonetheless, the Programme for Government specifically
stipulates that the actions of the new partnership
Government will work to end the housing shortage and
homelessness crisis.
You would hope it does, especially with the likes of some
935m in Government funds going into housing last year.
Critics and agencies agree that local authorities could do
more. Councils must inspect more rental properties, speed
up social housing builds and could use more vacant stock
to help the sector.
In fact, many agree the existing stock of 200,000 empty
homes nationwide should be more heavily focused on by
officials instead of the push to construct new units.
Mr Coveney did publish the promised action plan for
housing within 100 days of taking office. But is it working?
It could be argued it is too early to say.
But we are certainly experiencing a savage and damaging
housing crisis which is forcing families out of communities
and has already seen many lose the chances to own their
own homes.
Renters are in desperate places, trapped without any
rights or unable to pay huge rates. The Dublin Tenants
Association, set up two years ago, has been inundated
with complaints.
Member and spokesman Mick Byrne told the Irish
Examiner that landlords in rent cap areas are wrongly
hiking up rates.
But tenants fear being evicted and wont bring challenges
to the the residential tenancies board.
There is weak regulation and excess demand. It is a
disaster. Now people are being treated like second class
citizens. There is a strong culture of non-compliance
among landlords.
They are applying invalid rent increases, entering
properties unannounced and there are no minimum
standards. There is a systematic, unregulated black hole
at the centre of the rental market.
Equally, housing charity Threshold states families have
been priced out of the rental sector, particularly in Dublin,
in the last two years.
The supply of new social housing, says Threshold CEO John
Mark, is the key to rebuilding Ireland.
The quality of housing stock is equally worrying, says the
charity CEO. Mr Mark says standards in the private
housing sector could be improved by having a rating,
similar to the BER.
Clearly there is still a lot to be done. And Simon Coveneys
period of grace as the minister charged with fixing the
housing sector is coming to an end.
Families need relief. And soon.

Fianna Fil is to seek emergency laws to help tackle the

housing crisis in a belief that the Governments plan to
build new homes and tackle homelessness is failing, Juno
McEnroe.

In a radical move, the party wants emergency powers

given to the housing minister to help fast-track the
construction of social and affordable homes and a new
semi-state housing authority established.
The push comes as Housing Minister Simon Coveney,
writing in todays Irish Examiner, admits the housing
sector has been on life support for years and that
Ireland is a long way off delivering the necessary number
of homes for the population.

Progress though is being made, Mr Coveney insists.

Fianna Fil, whose support the Government relies on, is

now drafting proposals for emergency powers to remove
obstacles for the construction of homes for both private
and social housing.

Housing spokesman Barry Cowen told the Irish Examiner:

My party and I are genuinely very worried about the lack
of progress in delivering social and affordable housing for
people and families in particular.

There are still 700 families staying in hotels. We heard

earlier this week that only one rapid-build unit has been
delivered.

Emergency measures could include the commencement

of building on zoned lands immediately for social and
private housing, the removal of obstacles to building
rapid builds, and the setting up of a new housing agency
to manage the crisis.

An analysis of the five-point Government housing plan

shows only a fraction of the rapid-build homes have been
completed, the rental sector is still out of control and the
construction of new builds is slow.

The number of homeless families increased last month to

1,239, figures over the weekend show. Rents are also
rising sharply in areas not capped, agencies say.

Meanwhile, Mr Coveney will tomorrow unveil plans for the

construction of tens of thousands of new homes which will
be facilitated through a 200m infrastructure fund.

There are 7,167 people in emergency accommodation in

Ireland and many thousands more without a place to call
home. Yet, there are 198,358 empty homes. About 13% of
the housing stock is vacant, twice the level of a
functioning housing market.
This low-hanging fruit offers significant opportunities to
provide permanent homes for people who urgently need
them.
To have so many people without homes, and so many
homes without people, is unacceptable.
In Cork, there are 269 adults living in emergency
accommodation, while there are 21,287 empty homes.
In Dublin, there are 3,247 adults in emergency
accommodation and 35,293 empty homes. In Limerick,
there are 252 adults living in emergency accommodation
and 8,463 empty homes. The list goes on, right around the
country.
The Government has committed, in its Rebuilding Ireland
action plan for housing and homelessness, to developing a
national vacant housing re-use strategy, and this is due
out in the second quarter of 2017.
The Simon Communities have developed a 10-point Empty
Homes Plan: This has a range of solutions that we believe
should be included in the re-use strategy.
We must encourage people who own empty homes to
consider leasing, letting, or selling them.
The now nationwide repair and leasing scheme is a step in
the right direction, but the targeted return of 3,500
properties is not ambitious enough. It represents only
1.8% of total vacant properties in the State.
This needs to be revised upwards. The buy and renew
scheme provides funding for the delivery of social housing.
We want clear targets and mechanisms for approved
housing bodies (these are non-profit organisations, whose
purpose is the provision and management of housing) to
engage with the scheme.
This will enable people to move out of emergency
accommodation and into housing with support. This is the
best way to end homelessness. Incentives could
encourage the renting or leasing of the family home for
those involved in the Fair Deal scheme.
Participants of the Fair Deal scheme should be able to rent
out their homes tax-free up to a certain value.
The use of compulsory purchase orders (CPOs) under
existing legislation, and the introduction of compulsory
leasing orders (CLOs), should be considered, given the
devastating impact that the housing-and-homelessness
crisis is having on peoples lives.
These would target properties that are vacant for more
than 12 months and where the owner has not availed of
the incentives.
CLOs would allow local authorities to seek permission to
force a lease on an owner of an empty property and then
undertake refurbishment costs to make the property ready
for letting.
The property could then be used as social housing and the
rent could offset the cost of refurbishment. In addition, a
property tax should be introduced for houses that are
empty for more than 12 months.
Such a tax could be calculated on the basis of property
value or potential rental income, and could be increased
the longer a property remains vacant. Any such measures
should be proportionate and targeted at areas of greatest
housing need.
There is an urgent need for improved data collection and
monitoring. We need a real-time database, with formal
communication and data-sharing structures between
relevant bodies.
Currently, we cannot wholly gauge the entirety of the
problem and the suitability of empty houses for use. It is
essential that such databases are established
immediately.
All necessary resources, finance, and personnel must be
provided at national and local authority level, so that
empty houses can be put to use quickly as homes.
This involves the aforementioned data collection and
research; it also means ensuring that there are people at
local authority level who have the necessary planning,
regulatory, and technical know-how.
There should also be targeted public awareness and
outreach campaigns to identify, negotiate, and liaise with
property owners.
There must be political will, at both a national and local
level.
The use of these empty homes alone will not solve the
current crisis or prevent future housing crises, but if we
could turn around even half of the 198,358 empty houses,
this would end the trauma for the nearly 100,000 people
who are living their lives stuck in the awful limbo of
homelessness and housing insecurity.
Niamh Randall is the national spokesperson for the Simon
Communities

The announcement yesterday that a 100m scheme will

provide more than 1,300 houses in Cork is welcome. The
announcement must, however, also provoke a sigh of
relief.

A rich country such as this, and one that purports to have

a social conscience, should not have a housing shortage
like the one eating at the very heart of this society for the
last number of years.
That the crisis escalated despite warning after warning, all
vindicated, points to an unattractive deafness at
government level and a m fin society too tolerant of life-
defining social failure.
The initiative will go some way to resolving the issue, one
that is symbolic of the growing inequality challenging all
democracies, but we all know much more needs to be
done and done quickly. The psychological challenge,
ultimately a political one, is daunting but it must be faced.
The Fianna Fil decision to walk away from social house
was wrong and socially destructive. There can be no
argument, the evidence is all too painful to see. This
responsibility cannot be shirked again.
The Peter McVerry Trust calculated that there were 7,148
homeless people in Ireland just before Christmas. This
shameful statistic does not include those living in
unacceptable circumstances families in hotels uncertain
where they might sleep next week.
Young families unable to save a deposit for a home
because they are caught in the rental sector need help
too. Their plight proves we cannot rely on the market to
deliver on social obligations.
However, the market was involved in yesterdays
announcement through the EUs Competitive Dialogue
Procedure which brought developers, landowners and
builders together. This kind of partnership is entirely
welcome and underlines what an important force for good
EU programmes have become.
This a two-way street, though. Society, if it provides a
functioning system of decent social housing, should not be
shy about imposing a new air of realism around what
prospective tenants might expect or dictate.
Recent revelations from Cork County Council that people
on the housing list rejected offers of homes because there
was not enough room in the garden for a childrens
trampoline or that a sea view might provoke sea sickness
are unacceptable and should be treated as such,
preferably with a take-it-or-lose-it ultimatum.
In recent days, we have indulged our by now traditional
response to institutional failure the Government has
called a tribunal of inquiry.
If we could bear the idea of another one, surely it would
make sense to establish one on our housing crisis to try to
understand what caused it to ensure we never face
another.
All involved landowners, developers, financiers,
planners, transport and infrastructure authorities,
environmentalists, and more should be involved to try
to ensure that we never again get to the point where we
need to announce a 100m emergency package to house
citizens of this Republic.
We cant keep doing the same thing and expect a different
outcome, change is needed in how we plan housing. The
failures of the past and the demographics of the future
add urgency to that social obligation, one we should be
proud to fulfil.
More than 2,500 children will be homeless in Ireland on
Christmas day.
Some are almost 70 families who became homeless last
month.
Focus Ireland yesterday said a further 67 families were
added to Dublins homeless list during October.
The homeless support agencys director of advocacy, Mike
Allen, said: It is terrible to see, during the last year, the
number of children who are homeless and living in
emergency accommodation in Dublin has more than
doubled from 1,343 to 2,110.
Christmas should be one of the happiest times of year for
children and their families. However, it truly awful to
realise that over 2,500 children will be homeless this
Christmas Day. This is wrong and it is totally
unacceptable.
During the first 10 months of 2016, Focus Ireland helped
230 families move out of homelessness into secure
homes.
However, as at least two families are still becoming
homeless every single day the crisis continues to deepen,
said Mr Allen.
Increasing rents and a growing number of buy-to-let
homes being either repossessed or sold is causing a
constant rise in the numbers being forced into
homelessness.
Focus Ireland called for urgent action from the
Government to stem the level of evictions, particularly
from buy-to-let landlords.
There are over 15,000 buy-to-let landlords who are in
arrears by over two years. Banks and financial institutions
are repossessing these homes and evicting the tenants at
a rate of 100 a month, said Mr Allen.
We are calling on the Government to outlaw this practice
and ensure, where banks repossess such properties, they
sell them on with the tenant still in place.
From people who are reduced to begging on our streets, to
the big charities it seems that all of our responses to
the homelessness issue involve the marketing of human
misery,

The Home Sweet Home movement captured the public

imagination when it took over Apollo House last winter.

As sales pitches go, it was a half-hearted attempt.

Any spare change, the gruff voice muttered without
intonation to indicate whether it was a question or a
command.
Ill say a prayer for you, God bless you, it continued in
monotone before lowering to add: And all that shite.

Now any marketing expert will tell you that to grab an

audiences attention, impart a message to them, and
extract money from them, you need to impress by being
imaginative, persuasive, and earnest.
And its best not to use God and excrement in the same
sentence.
But the man with the gruff voice who sat in the doorway of
a vacant shop premises didnt look to be open to advice.
As he muttered, he fumbled with a roll-your-own cigarette
from a small supply he kept in the plastic DVD case of a
missing action adventure movie.
His tangled beard appeared stuck to the front of his filthy
anorak so that his head and torso moved as one, minimal
and slow though such movements were, and a thin
sleeping bag pushed shapelessly to the side indicated
hard nights past, and more ahead.
A few minutes walk away, another man had adopted a
different strategy, folding himself into a neat human cube
on the footpath, a piece of cardboard held level with the
knees of those passing by. In carefully-written capital
letters it appealed for help in putting a roof over the mans
head, emphasising that he was an IRISH MAN.
Not much further along, a young man was using the
personal approach, the short, sad story on his piece of
cardboard beginning with: My name is... It was also an
Irish name, the kind of name your uncle or cousin has, the
kind of name you play football with, a name that said Im
someone you know so please dont ignore me.
Around the corner was yet another forlorn human form
and another piece of cardboard explaining that the owner
was homeless because of family breakdown. I dont drink
or do drugs, it stressed.
Another short walk away, another man sat with a mostly
illegible sign, the only discernible words pleading Please,
hostel and Good Bless.
So who won the award for best presentation? It was a toss-
up between the aging cube, unobtrusive yet impactful,
and the young man with the name effective
humanisation of the issue.
And if that sounds like a callously facetious approach to
the scandal of homelessness and the distress and
suffering it is causing in our society, it is only to illustrate
how awful and humiliating it must be to have to market
ones own misery in an attempt to compete for
compassion with the growing number of others doing the
same.
Charities are well used to the routine and they dont have
much choice but to factor marketing and advertising costs
into their administration budgets.
So it may have been exasperating for the established
homeless charities to see the Home Sweet Home
campaign whip up close to 200,000 in donations in the
space of a few weeks with little more than a hashtag and
some headline-grabbing direct action.
The occupation of Apollo House last December gave vent
to the frustrations of many in a way that structured
charities cant provide for.
It captured imaginations, stirred up passions, amassed a
celebrity following, and highlighted in a very visual,
physical way the inequalities in Irish society and the
absurdities that feed them. Whats the solution to people
sleeping on the street? Put them in the empty buildings
that line the street. Simple. Illegal too, but then the laws
an ass. Right?
For a few weeks in December, it was almost believable
that it was as black and white as that. But now there is a
pot of money left over around 130,000 and
questions are being asked about what should be done with
it.
There have been calls for it to be handed over to
experienced housing charities, but the Home Sweet Home
campaigners believe they have started something
different and want to continue in that vein. They have said
the money will go to grassroots organisations and projects
instead.
Which groups and projects, how much, and when has not
yet been decided because as it is a movement rather
than organisation decisions must be taken collectively
and that inevitably takes time. What happens next is
unclear.
Does the movement publish details of its allocations,
accounts, audits? Or does the groundswell of support that
the campaign generated last December allow it presume
that trust follows, so that it doesnt have to speak for
every cent spent?
In a period of unprecedented regulation and scrutiny of
structured charities, will fluid charitable movements
become more attractive to volunteers and more appealing
to donors?
Is it good that theres choice? Or does it just create more
competition for resources among people who have
essentially the same needs, the same beliefs, and the
same aims, demeaning all in the process?
At street level, on the footpaths and doorways of an Irish
city, the competition is painfully evident.
Across the road from the man with the illegible sign,
another man lay propped up against a shopping bag of
belongings, half-in, half-out of his sleeping bag like a
stranded merman.
He had gone the no-sign, no-talk route, possibly surmising
that his presence alone one man and a paper coffee
cup said all that was needed.
Is he a robber? asked a small child passing by. His
mother, embarrassed by the question and, more so, by the
volume at which it was posed, quickly dismissed it with a
no, no, no.
Nanny says theyre all robbers, the child retorted.
In Nannys eyes, there would be no winners for best
presentation of personal hardship. But the very notion that
compassion could become a prize in a contest of human
suffering makes losers of us all.
From people who are reduced to begging on our streets, to
the big charities it seems that all of our responses to
the homelessness issue involve the marketing of human
misery

Homeless people sleeping outside Dil to highlight crisis

A group of homeless people have begun sleeping outside

the Dil this week, to highlight the homeless crisis.

The group are trying to get the message across that

homeless people want 'homes not hostels'.

One of the group's organisers, Carrie Hennessy, says they

are asking as many people as possible to come and show
their solidarity each morning between 8am and 10am.

"I'm just asking people to come out in the morning times

and let the homeless people know that they do actually
have a bit of public support," she said.
"The public were brilliant when we were in Apollo House.
The public got right behind that and it was brilliant, but
right now we haven't got any support whatsoever off the
public, the activists, any homeless services.

"The only ones we do have the support of is the homeless

soup kitchens."

People in Dublin are being urged to donate sanitary towels

for the city's homeless women.

A collection is being organised to help support those who

sleep rough in the capital.

The Homeless Period Dublin initiative, is asking for

donations of sanitary towels, tampons and baby wipes.

It is being organised to mark International Women's day,

in a bid to highlight the difficulties faced by women who
live on the streets.

More information can be found on the Homeless Period

Dublin's Facebook page here.

View image on Twitter

 Follow

Dub_HomelessPeriod

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2:17 PM - 27 Feb 2017
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Green Party calls on Government to ban home repossessions

Government has been urged to ban the repossession of

tens of thousands of homes across the country because
at-risk families may not have been given a full breakdown
of their rights by Irish courts, writes Fiachra Cionnaith,
Political Correspondent.

The Green Party issued the demand as it warned the issue

potentially poses "serious financial implications" to the
State unless an immediate moratorium is placed on the
house repossessions.

Speaking to reporters outside Leinster House, Greens TD

Catherine Martin said a recent High Court ruling in the AIB
v Counihan case found that European consumer law must
be considered in any home repossession in Ireland.
However, while this means judges and county registrars
must carry out an assessment of whether the deals
involved were "fair and appropriate" and must ensure
home owners are fully informed of their rights, this has not
happened in all cases.

Ms Martin said the situation, which would render

thousands of repossessions technically illegal and leave
the State liable for any financial implications involved,
must be addressed and called for Government to
effectively ban repossessions until the legal problem is
resolved.

"The latest Central Bank figures show over 79,562 private

home mortgages are in arrears. Of these, 34,551 are in
arrears over 720 days.

"On the December 21, 2016 the Cork Circuit Court dealt
with 40 cases alone.

"Many of the cases decided since that date may now be in

conflict with EU law, and would therefore be unlawful
repossessions.

"There is a potential financial risk for the State here. If the

Irish courts were not properly implementing EU law in
these cases, and homeowners suffered a loss because of
this, the State may be liable to pay them damages," she
said.

The repossessions ban request - which is due to be made

during the topical questions section of the Dil's business
this evening - comes amid claims from mortgage rights
campaigner David Hall that up to 20,000 families are on
the verge of losing their homes.

A private members bill motion from the Anti-Austerity

Alliance/People Before Profit calling for strict new laws to
regulate vulture funds is also due to be heard tonight.

While the AAA-PBP bill is likely to be defeated as it is due

to be opposed by Government, it will demand that
receivers and vulture funds are re-classified as landlords
and for a new ban preventing tenants from eviction
because their home is being sold, among other measures.
The trade union linked to the Home Sweet Home
campaign has defended its failure to use a vacant building
it owns to accommodate homeless people.

The UNITE union owns a building on Merrion Square in

Dublin which has been lying empty for three years.

The union applied to Dublin City Council to exempt it from

social housing use, and is trying to sell the property.

But UNITE believes it was legally obliged to do this as part

of its planning application.

And Spokesperson Jimmy Kelly claims there's no parallel

between its property and Apollo House.
A statement released by Unite the Union about the
premises at 15 Merrion Square says: "Unite is seeking to
sell the former Amicus offices at 15 Merrion Square, which
are in poor condition, with the benefit of planning
permission for apartments.

"In so doing, our aim is to maximise the value of this

property for our members throughout Ireland and ensure
that we have the resources to support and defend them.

"Unite regards attempts to draw a parallel between 15

Merrion Square and Apollo House as, at best, disingenuous
and, at worst, mischievous.

Home Sweet Home to vacate Apollo House, SAYS Simon Coveney

"As a NAMA property, Apollo House belongs to the people

of Ireland."
Home Sweet Home says they're increasingly concerned
about the Government's commitment to the deal on Apollo
House.

It's after Simon Coveney suggested the two new homeless

shelters would have come on stream even without the
occupation.

They say eight residents who had left Apollo House have
since returned because of poor conditions in other hostels.

A court order is due to come into effect tomorrow for the

occupiers to vacate the NAMA owned building.

Tomorrow morning legal representatives of Apollo House

will apply for a stay on the order to vacate the building.

Their occupation is due to become illegal at noon - but

they want to extend their occupancy until all the homeless
people in the building can be re-homed, as per their deal
with Housing Minister Simon Coveney.

o agreement has been reached between the occupiers of

Apollo House and the Housing Minister after almost seven
hours of talks.

Home Sweet Home met the Minister and housing officials

last night. Significant progress was made towards a
resolution, but it is not finalised.

A delegation from Home Sweet Home including unions,

Glen Hansard, Jim Sheridan and Apollo House activists met
the Minister and his officials.

On the way out Brendan Ogle said progress had been

made.
"There are substantial areas of agreement, and others of
disagreement," he said. "We've agreed to reflect on what's
happened to date, and reflect on it."

Minister Simon Coveney was also upbeat about the talks.

"I'm hopeful that by the middle of next week we'll be able

to comply with the court ruling to vacate Apollo House,"
he said.

Discussions will continue over the weekend between the

two sides ahead of Wednesday's deadline, by which time
the High Court has ordered Apollo House must be vacated.

Somewhat ironically as the delegations left talks at the

Housing Agency on Mount Street in Dublin, a homeless
man was setting up his bed for the night in a neighbouring
doorway - highlighting the reality facing many Apollo
House residents.

The state's bad-bank Nama said it has delivered 2,378

social houses and apartments amid renewed calls for it to
make more property available for the homeless.

The Home Sweet Home campaign demanded the

Government force the agency to move faster as a deadline
looms for the group to leave the Apollo House office block
in central Dublin.

Up to 40 homeless people have been living in the once-

empty civil service building since it was occupied by
activists in the middle of December.

Organisers are to meet Housing Minister Simon Coveney

on Friday as behind-the-scenes efforts are made to avoid
the potential for a forced eviction when a court order kicks
in next Wednesday at midday.

Brendan Ogle (pictured), one of those leading the

campaign, said Nama can be forced to increase the
amount of social housing available "at the stroke of a
pen".

"The bar has been raised in terms of the minimum

standards that should be provided to our most vulnerable
citizens, those homeless people who find themselves on
the street," he said.

Mr Ogle outlined a series of demands to deal with the

housing and homelessness crisis and to help bring an end
to the occupation of Apollo House.
The campaign's emergency housing response plan
includes calls for accommodation which homeless people
can access 24 hours a day and remain in for six months,
private beds and access to services.

"We believe ... through Nama, our ministers are in a

fortunate position. Angela Merkel doesn't have a Nama.
There's homelessness in Berlin. Theresa May doesn't have
a Nama and there's homelessness in London. And Francois
Hollande doesn't have a Nama and there's homelessness
in Paris," Mr Ogle said.

The trade union official said Finance Minister Michael

Noonan and his cabinet colleague Mr Coveney effectively
control land and buildings which can be re-designated for
the homeless people living in Apollo House.

In its annual review Nama defended its work on social

housing and said it delivered 2,378 houses and
apartments in 167 individual projects in 19 counties.

They include 899 in the four Dublin council areas, 445 in

Cork city and county, 228 in Galway city and county, 51 in
Waterford and 16 in Limerick.

Another 370 homes are being worked on.

It said it had identified 6,941 homes for social housing

since 2012.

In its statement it said: "Throughout 2016, Nama

continued to work closely with the Department of Housing,
Planning, Community and Local Government and the
Housing Agency in seeking to match the residential stock
held by its debtors and receivers with the requirements of
local authorities for social housing."

Nama also said that it had 2.2bn in cash at the end of

last year and that it expects to turn a profit of about
2.3bn when it finishes its work.

It said that the number of unfinished or ghost estates on

its books came down from 332 at the end of 2010 to 25 at
the end of last year. Nama said it should be resolved this
year.

The Home Sweet Home campaign sent a petition to Mr

Noonan earlier this week urging him to use a clause in the
Nama act to force it to make property available for social
housing.
The occupiers of Apollo House have agreed to attend a
meeting with the Housing Minister tomorrow.

The Home Sweet Home group will send a delegation of

seven members to meet with Simon Coveney, after
receiving an invitation from the Minister.

#HomeSweetHome press conference

Posted by Home Sweet Home Eire
Glen Hansard: 'We are involved in an act of civil disobedience'
The Late Late Show | RT One

Dec 16, 2016

We are involved in an act of civil disobedience, Glen Hansard tells
The #LateLate Show as he talks
about #HomeSweetHome and #OccupyNama

Watch The Late Late Show live and on-demand from anywhere in the world
at http://www.rte.ie/player

The Late Late Show | Fridays | RT One, 9:35pm Irish Time

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SWXG_StdIl8

#HomeSweetHome press conference outlining our plans and set

out our vision on how to deal with the wider housing crisis.
Download Emergency Housing Plan here:
Home Sweet Home Emergency Housing Plan We have more
homeless people in Ireland now than at any time since the Famine
(1845-1848). Fr Peter McVerry
http://homesweethome.irish/assets/docs/HSH_report_print.pdf

THIS IS OUR IRELAND'

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0zYyvMfkU2g
Highest number' of rough sleepers recorded in
Dublin, From this date forward on Wednesday,
May 24, 2017
The highest number of rough sleepers was recorded in
Dublin last night according to Inner City Helping Homeless.

Three Inner City Helping Homeless (ICHH) teams found

that 173 people were sleeping rough.

They said that 133 were male, 38 were female, and 2 were
children.
ICHH have said that they have seen an increase in those
presenting as rough sleepers over the last few months, in
particular an 18% increase in a six week period.

Speaking today on the figure, ICHH CEO Anthony Flynn

stated: "This is a concerning and worrying increase, the
number of those sleeping rough is consistently on the
increase month on month.

"The figure is disappointing to say the least. A

consolidated effort from all agencies is now required and a
full review of how service is implemented is warranted
immediately. We now have children presenting on the
streets with parents because of the lack of resources.

"Only last night a family with two young children had to

sleep on an office floor because the DRHE could not
provide a hotel. Bed closures in Wolfe Tone Quay have not
helped he situation. The situation is out of control and
requires an immediate reformation of the homeless
summit.

"Enough money is being spent to provide service that is

clearly not hitting the ground. The Minister needs a full
revaluations of the situation and he needs it now," he said.
Bargaintown building to be
converted into housing for
homeless families
Nine facilities across Dublin to be used as family hub
emergency accommodation
Tue, May 23, 2017, 18:23
Olivia Kelly

The Peter McVerry Trust will run rooms for 11 families at a large house off the
Malahide Road in the Fingal County Council area. Photograph: Dara Mac
Dnaill
A former Bargaintown furniture showroom and
warehouse in Coolock is to be used to provide
accommodation for homeless families currently living in
Dublin hotels.
The building in the Greencastle Parade industrial estate
is one of nine facilities across Dublin that will be used as
family hub emergency accommodation centres .
The facilities will cater for approximately 380 families
and will be refurbished, converted, and fitted out with
services including homework clubs, play spaces, laundry,
cooking and dining facilities, in addition to bedrooms.
More than 1,000 families are currently in emergency
accommodation and 815 of those are living in hotels.
 Minister for Housing Simon Coveney has set a deadline
of July 1st to end the use of commercial hotels for
homeless families.
Commercial buildings
Eight of the buildings have been leased by Dublin City
Council for five years, while one, Ashling House a B&B in
Clontarf, has been bought by the council.
Bargaintown, which will have 40 family rooms, is one of
two former industrial/commercial buildings which are
being converted into family hubs. The other is a former
Prison Service building owned by the Office of Public
Works which will house up to 30 families. Both will be
run by the Salvation Army.
Alone marks 40 years aiding elderly through
charitable work
Homeless families with nowhere to sleep sent to
Garda stations
Dublin councils accused of preventing housing
development
The only hub to open so far, High Park, a former
Magdalene laundry in Drumcondra, has space for 42
families under the care of Respond housing association.
Nearby, the Mater Dei Institute, on Clonliffe Road will
have places for 50 families. The facility will be run by
Crosscare, a social services agency of the Catholic
archdiocese of Dublin.
Another Catholic institution, the Sons of the Divine
Providence, will run a hub at a former boys home in
Ballyfermot with rooms for 11 families.
Smaller facilities
A number of smaller facilities have also been secured.
Ashling House will have 13 family rooms; the Peter
McVerry Trust will run rooms for 11 families at a large
house off the Malahide Road in the Fingal County
Council area; while a 12-room facility has been secured
in the Dn Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council area at
Millmount Dundrum.
The council does not have to go through the normal
planning process to convert these buildings into family
hubs, because the homeless problem has been deemed
an emergency situation under the planning acts.
However, city councillors are concerned about the lack of
information provided about the facilities.
I believe we are here because of a decision a Minister
made, and we are dealing with the fall out. Im very
annoyed we werent consulted. The reason Im annoyed
is that I want to support you, not to stifle you, Sinn Fin
councillor Crona N Dhlaigh told council housing
officials.
Deputy council chief executive and head of housing
Brendan Kenny apologised for not consulting
councillors.
We couldnt consult on these issues. We knew if we did
consult it would take too long and we were of the view
that if we did consult there would be huge opposition to
all these projects.
He said he would be happy to work with councillors on
how we plan the rest of it.
http://www.irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/bargaintown-building-
to-be-converted-into-housing-for-homeless-families-
1.3093692#.WSbvJ_RfGS8.facebook

AH Yes.
Mother church reaps the rewards again.
Sick.
Not women this time.
Families!
None in Dalkey or Shrewsberry Road mind
you!
The State is wasting the taxpayers money for
the greater good. and the Church is reaping
the rewards.
Simple question.
How much are these 'institutions' getting
paid?
We demand TOTAL TRANSPARENCY in all
matters relating our taxes.
"The only 'compound' to open so far, High
Park, a former Magdalene laundry in
Drumcondra, has space for 42 families under
the care of Respond housing association.
Nearby, the Mater Dei Institute, on Clonliffe
Road will have places for 50 families. The
facility will be run by Crosscare, a social
services agency of the Catholic archdiocese of
Dublin.
Another Catholic institution, the Sons of the
Divine Providence, will run a hub at a former
boys home in Ballyfermot with rooms for 11
families.
Smaller facilities
A number of smaller facilities have also been
secured. Ashling House will have 13 family
rooms; the Peter McVerry Trust will run rooms
for 11 families at a large house off the
Malahide Road in the Fingal County Council
area; while a 12-room facility has been
secured in the Dn Laoghaire-Rathdown
County Council area at Millmount Dundrum.
The council does not have to go through the
normal planning process to convert these
buildings into family hubs, because the
homeless problem has been deemed an
emergency situation under the planning
acts.
However, city councillors are concerned about
the lack of information provided about the
facilities.

Enda Kennys legacy is a

300% increase in child
homelessness Broin
25 May, 2017

Sinn Fin Housing spokesperson Eoin Broin TD has stated

that the outgoing Taoiseachs legacy after six years in office is a
300% increase in child homelessness.

Speaking during Leaders Questions in the Dil today, Deputy

Broin challenged the Tnaiste on the governments failure to
deal with the family homelessness crisis, saying:

In 2011, when the Taoiseach assumed office there were 641

homeless children. Last month, 2, 563 children slept in
Department of Housing funded emergency accommodation.
These figures do not include children in Tusla funded domestic
violence accommodation, or the children of the hundreds of
families trapped in direct provision having got their leave to
remain; or the children in emergency accommodation funded
by the New Communities Unit.

The sad fact is that the government has no idea how many
children will sleep in emergency accommodation tonight. After
guaranteeing the rights of the child in the Constitution, this
government has left thousands of children living in emergency
accommodation. Many of whom have been staying in
unsuitable hostels, B&Bs, and hotels for up to two years.

The devastating plight of twelve families and 30 children,

brought to light by Focus Ireland, who on Tuesday night
presented at Garda stations because they had nowhere else go,
is a damning indictment of government housing policy.

To highlight this governments incapability to deal with the

homeless crisis, CSO figures show that there are 183,000
vacant homes across the state, 40,000 of them in Dublin alone.
Thats 24 vacant homes for every single homeless person in the
state.

The government must accept that its housing policy is failing. It

must urgently release funding to allow Local Authorities to
acquire vacant homes to ensure that no child is left in
emergency accommodation for more than 6 months.

http://www.sinnfein.ie/contents/44804
Dear @campaignforLeo could you ask your colleague in housing to publish
April 2017 homeless stats which are late. Also please consider this.

Any chance the Ministers for Housing and Social Protection might do their
fucking jobs, to house the homeless people in Ireland

Homeless families with

nowhere to sleep sent to
Garda stations
No other accommodation for 12 homeless families,
including more than 30 children
May 25, 17
Kitty Holland

All 12 families were already homeless and self-accommodating on a night-

to-night basis as they had not been provided with medium-term emergency
accommodation. File photograph: iStockPhoto
Twelve homeless families, including more than 30
children, were told to go to Garda stations in Dublin on
Tuesday night because no other emergency
accommodation was available.
Among them were three families, recently evicted from
their homes, who presented at Store Street Garda station
but eventually chose instead to sleep rough in a nearby
park. Other families were directed to Pearse Street and
Clondalkin stations, it is understood.
Now we are coming into the tourism
season and hotels are less likely to make
beds available to homeless families
All 12 families were already homeless and self-
accommodating on a night-to-night basis as they had
not been provided with medium-term emergency
 accommodation. They were unable to find hotel or B&B
beds by 4pm on Tuesday, and presented at Focus
Irelands drop-in coffee shop, at which stage staff began
calling hotels.

Some families in need to emergency accommodation were directed to Pearse

Street Garda station (above). File photograph: Bryan OBrien
Focus Ireland is the lead agency dealing with homeless
families.
Alone marks 40 years aiding elderly through
charitable work
Dublin councils accused of preventing housing
development
Disabled homeless children not priority for housing,
says Ombudsman
By 7pm beds had not been sourced for the 12 families,
and other emergency options, including placing the
families in hostels for single adults, were looked at.
However, these too were full. At this point the families
were directed to present themselves at their local Garda
stations.
Devastating
Mike Allen, Focus Irelands director of advocacy,
described the outcome as devastating for the families,
and also for staff who had made several hundred
phone calls to hotels and B&Bs, and whose priority was
to find safe accommodation for the families.
What happened on Tuesday night is
unprecedented and shocking
He said families were often fearful of presenting at
Garda stations, anxious that the children could be taken
into care.
What happened on Tuesday night is unprecedented and
shocking. We have been triggering the emergency beds
for families, in adult hostels increasingly, since January
and nightly through April. Now we are coming into the
tourism season and hotels are less likely to make beds
available to homeless families.
He said up to 200 families a night were now self-
accommodating, seeking night-by-night bookings.

Mike Allen, Focus Irelands director of advocacy. He described Tuesday night

as devastating for the families, and for staff who had made several hundred
phone calls to hotels and B&Bs.

Hotel rooms
The charity reiterated its call, first made 18 months ago,
that the Government commandeer hotel rooms so no
family faced sleeping rough. It said it worked in
partnership with the Dublin Region Homeless Executive
(DRHE), but the Government had failed families whose
housing was vulnerable.
A spokeswoman for the DRHE said it had been notified
by Focus Ireland it was actively engaged with families
who were unable to source their own accommodation.
Dublin City Council provides an emergency supply of
contingency capacity for families, all of which were
invoked [on Tuesday night].
http://www.irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/homeless-families-
with-nowhere-to-sleep-sent-to-garda-stations-
1.3095281#.WSaFyMOUNuY.twitter

Homeless families to be housed in revamped

industrial premises
May 19 2017
The disused industrial premises at Clonard Road, Crumlin
Direct Provision : @simoncoveney to house families in disused industrial
premises
A disused industrial premises in Dublin is among 15 properties to be used by
Housing Minister Simon Coveney in order to move 600 homeless families
from hotels, it has emerged.

The property on Clonard Road, Kimmage - most recently used as a probation

office - is set to be renovated by Dublin City Council (DCC) in order to house
24 families.

It comes as part of Mr Coveney's plans to ensure that hotels will not be used as
a form of emergency accommodation by a July 1 deadline.

In documents seen by the Irish Independent, Dublin City Council is "currently

converting suitable buildings into family accommodation hubs across the
Dublin region" with 15 in the process to house in total 600 families, according
to a Homeless Executive spokeswoman.

However, the spokeswoman said that the families would still be considered
homeless and these buildings would be used only temporarily.

The spokeswoman denied this was a way of the minister reducing the number
of homeless people recorded.

"The use of commercial hotels for families is unsuitable and the new family
hubs will have the capacity to provide play space, cooking and laundry
facilities and communal recreation space," the document read.

"Other supports will also be available for families as they move on to other
housing options when they become available," it added.
Planning permission was not deemed necessary for the renovation and change
of purpose of the building as the city manager deemed it "an emergency
situation calling for immediate action". The decision was made without
consulting any residents or businesses in the area, according to DCC, which
says its policy is only to make people aware once the go-ahead is given.

It is understood that council officials and surveyors have visited the site in
recent weeks. All 24 families due to stay in the property will have children,
with the target group having a local connection to the area where possible.
Some children may have to attend school outside of the locality.

Jennifer and James Cromwell, who live opposite the property, say the plans
were a "mystery" to them. They said they didn't object to an influx of people,
but were worried the building wpi;d be too cramped for so many families.
It is understood councillors were made aware of the plans only at an area
meeting on Wednesday. Other properties being developed for similar
purposes already will be located on Clonliffe Road, Dublin 3, and at Hyde
Park, Drumcondra. The hubs will be run by separate social support agencies.

A spokesperson for the Housing Department said that a number of the family
hubs would become available by the middle of this year.

He added that the minister is committed to using hotels only in "exceptional

circumstances" and that against this background, the department along with
local authorities, NGOs, housing bodies and a range of stakeholders are
working on delivering the target.

http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/homeless-families-to-be-
housed-in-revamped-industrial-premises-35732355.html?
utm_content=buffer130be&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitt
er.com&utm_campaign=buffer
Housing crisis 'drowned out by
beauty parade' of FG leadership
battle - Dil row hears

Kevin Doyle and John Downing

May 25 2017

The homeless crisis is being drowned out by the beauty

parade of Simon Coveney and Leo Varadkar who are
vying to be the next Taoiseach, it has been claimed
People Before Profit TD Richard Boyd Barrett has
launched a blistering attack on the men via for the
leadership of Fine Gael, saying they are two people who
have helped fuelled the crisis.
He described revelations that 12 families, including more
than 30 children, were told to go to Garda stations on
Tuesday night because there no hotel or emergency
accommodation was available.
 Mr Boyd Barrett said the development marked a new low
in the housing crisis and needed emergency action.
Solidary-PBP have put forward legislation that would
restrict evictions and bring rent levels back to 2011 rates
but it will be voted down by the Government today with
the help of Fianna Fil.
The Dun Laoghaire TD said he wanted to express fury
and anger over the decision, saying Fianna Fil dont
want to upset landlords and vulture funds.
He said Mr Coveney and Mr Varadkars fingerprints are
all over the housing crisis but they are prancing around
the country vying for the positon of Taoiseach.
He said the Rent Pressure Zones introduced by the
Housing Minister in a bid to cap rates was being ignored
by landlords.
And Mr Boyd Barrett warned that a change of personal in
the Department of Housing after the new Taoiseachs
appointment would be another excuse for the
Government to delay taking action.
Read more: Coveney hits out at rival's big focus on
'people who get up early'
Read more: Comment: If Simon really wants to win, it's
time he took those gloves off
Meanwhile, Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald has
conceded that it is unacceptable that homeless families
were forced to seek shelter in a garda station.
But Ms Fitzgerald has also told the Dil that the cases were
exceptional and plans to end homeless families living in
hotels will be realised by the middle of this year.
What happened last Tuesday night is unacceptable but
it was exceptional. It was out of the ordinary, the Justice
Minister said in reply to scathing attacks from Fianna Fil
housing spokesman, Barry Cowen.
Mr Cowen said the homeless situation in Dublin was now
a humanitarian crisis. It is a damning indictment of this
Government, he said.
Sinn Fin housing spokesman Eoin Broin said there
were 24 vacant houses for every homeless families.
Labour leader Brendan Howlin said up to 200,000 houses
were vacant across the country. But still 12 families were
forced to go to a garda station for shelter last Tuesday.
There is no amount of discussion of policy that could
inure us to the real impact of this ongoing crisis on 12
families, Mr Howlin said.
The Justice Minister said there was now 3.5bn being
made available for social housing. A major programme
was under way to ensure vacant houses are brought back
into use.
By the end of this year we will see a dramatic increase in
supply, Ms Fitzgerald added.
http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/politics/housing-crisis-
drowned-out-by-beauty-parade-of-fg-leadership-battle-dil-row-hears-
35755368.html
food parcels, 70 mats on the floor for homeless, hundreds queuing for food
nightly under Central Bank. Enda Kenny whats to miss?
I cant keep doing this, says
homeless woman told to
seek shelter in Garda station
I am trying to get my son to school, mind my younger son
all while making phone calls trying to find a room
May 25, 17

Cheryl Barnwell with her children Clayton (9) and Rocco (23 months).
Photograph: Alan Betson/The Irish Times

A woman who spent the night with her family in the

office of a homeless charity after she was referred to a
Garda station has said I cant keep doing this.
Cheryl Barnwell, her two sons, Clayton (9) and Rocco
(23 months) and her partner, were one of 12 families ,
including more than 30 children, referred to a Garda
station on Tuesday night because no other emergency
accommodation was available.
All 12 families were already homeless and self-
accommodating on a night-to-night basis as they had
not been provided with medium-term emergency
accommodation.
They were unable to find hotel or B&B beds and when all
emergency options had been looked at, and not
 accommodation found, families were directed to present
themselves at their local Garda stations.
Ms Barnwell said the situation was heartbreaking.
Speaking on RTs Today with Sean ORourke, Cheryl
Barnwell said that this is no way for families to live and
the proposed family hubs were not sufficient because
they are just hotels, with the hotel name removed.
I am trying to get my partner to work, my older son to
school, then mind my younger son, all while making
phone calls trying to find a room.
Massaging figures
Calling these family hubs is just massaging figures.
They are still hotels.
She said everyone should have their own home and
privacy. Theres enough accommodation around Dublin
for everyone. Or so were told. We should have our own
home.
Ms Barnwell said she had worked since she was 14 years
old and explained that her family became homeless
seven- and-a-half months ago after her landlord decided
to stop renting to Dublin City Council tenants.
Until then, she said, she had worked full-time and she
and her partner had paid the equivalent of a mortgage in
rent.
She said she had to give up her job because it is too
difficult to do everything while also searching for
accommodation on a daily basis. This is no way to live.
Ive worked all my life since I was 14. Ive tried to teach
my children that you have to work for everything.
My nine year old is fully aware of what is happening. He
sees me ringing around. He just wants a home so he can
play with his pals.
Zappone deeply upset homeless families sent to
Garda stations
Bargaintown building to be converted into housing for
homeless families
 Homeless families with nowhere to sleep sent to
Garda stations
She said she rang around 40 hotels and B&Bs between
9am and 6pm on Tuesday and then rang the Dublin City
Council self-accommodation line, who advised her to
contact Focus Ireland, who in turn advised her to attend
a Garda station.
Ms Barnwell said she later went to a Garda station where
she was told that, unless they were arrested, they could
not sleep in a cell.
She said the family stayed in their car until midnight,
when they received a text from the head of Inner City
Helping Homeless Anthony Flynn.
She, her partner and two sons then spent the night in the
charitys office.
Mr Flynn said Tuesday night was one of the worse he has
seen in four years of homeless services.
He said he rang over 55 hotels between midnight and
1.30am and not one was able to accommodate the
family.
Whitewash
Speaking on the same programme, Mr Flynn said the
family hubs, proposed by Minister for Housing Simon
Coveney, is a recategorisation of hotel accommodation
and described it as a whitewash.
The time and effort being spent on sourcing these hubs,
he said, could be spent sourcing houses and apartments
for families.
He said the family hubs are a white wash and
recategorisation.
It is exactly the same building, just recategorised. They
are not moving people out of homelessness. It is white
washing.
Weve met the Minister. We have told him that his plan
is not going to work. Hotels are being bought under five
years leases. They are recategorisated as family hubs
but it is still the same building.
The time and money being spent on this could be spent
on apartment blocks.
I cant keep doing this. I am trying to get my partner to
work, my older son to school, then mind my younger
son, all while making phone calls trying to find a room.
Calling these family hubs is just massaging figures.
They are still hotels.
Theres enough accommodation around Dublin for
everyone. Or so were told. We should have our own
home.
The director of advocacy at Focus Ireland said the
Governments efforts on emergency accommodation
were misplaced.
If they put the same amount of energy into a
commitment into preventing families from being turfed
out of their rented homes... we would have a more
positive effect, said Focus Ireland director of advocacy
Mike Allen
He told Newstalk Breakfast and RTs Morning Ireland
that a change in legislation was needed to more
accurately reflect the current homeless situation in
Ireland.
The current legislation was written for homeless single
men. It has not been updated to take into account
children and families and their needs.
What are the new statutory responsibilities? There
should be legislation that ensures no families sleep
rough.
Focus Ireland says that the number of homeless families
in Dublin is now well over a thousand.
Mr Allen said that his organisation has been warning for
two years that this situation could arise.
He said the situation on Tuesday night was horrific
when there were no hotel rooms as emergency
accommodation for 12 families.
That was the highest number ever. One or two families
would send shockwaves through our organisation. But to
have 12 families 30 children and one pregnant woman,
without a bed, was horrific.
http://www.irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/i-can-t-keep-doing-
this-says-homeless-woman-told-to-seek-shelter-in-garda-station-
1.3096001
According to Focus there are well over 1000 families homeless in Dublin. But the frightening
fact remains that Theres no law that has been broken nobody has failed to meet their
statutory duties. There doesnt appear to be any obligation on the State, on the Taoiseach, on
the Government, even when theyve been found homeless, even when they have children in
their care.

Vulture funds pay around 1 in

taxes for every 1 million they
hold in Irish assets'
Despite endless promises from government ministers, the housing
situation is steadily deteriorating, writes Dr Brian OBoyle.
May 25, 17

Dr Brian OBoyle
Economic advisor to People Before Profit
DYSFUNCTION IN THE housing sector has become the
defining crisis of our age. Despite endless promises from
government ministers, the housing situation is steadily
deteriorating.
Consider some of the facts. There are currently 7,472 people
classified as homeless, 2,563 of whom are children. This is a
record level of homelessness in the state. More than 75,000
families remain in mortgage arrears, 55,000 of whom have
not paid anything for more than 90 days. In the public
system things are no better. Around 130,000 families are
stuck on local authority waiting lists, some for more than
decade.
This has added to the current explosion in rental costs, with
prices rising by around 13% year on year.
Corporate giveaway
One reason for this crisis, is the historical drive to
commodify housing. Since the 1970s successive Irish
governments have run down the social and affordable
housing stock in a deliberate move to facilitate the private
sector.
To put some figures on this, more than 500,000 houses
were built during the early 2000s, with only 46,000
designated social and affordable. To make matters worse,
the State has sold off nearly 200,000 public units, whilst
Fine Gael have built virtually no local authority housing
since they came into office. This chronic undersupply is one
part of the problem.
The other part is the corporate give away. When it was
formed, the National Assets Management Agency (NAMA)
was touted as the solution to potential fire sales in the
property sector. NAMA was supposed to take distressed
assets off the balance sheets of the banks and hold them
until the market recovered.
This never happened. Instead, Fine Gael instructed NAMA
to engage in the fire sale it was meant to avoid. Up to 90% of
the property in NAMA went to Vulture Funds who, in turn,
used section 110 legislation to pay virtually nothing in taxes.
According to a recent report in the Sunday Business Post,
vulture funds pay around 1 in taxes for every 1 million
they hold in Irish assets. Between them International Funds
and local developers have hundreds of billions of property
assets and zoned land. The best way to get some of this land
into use would be to penalise those sitting on their assets.
Instead, FG wants to give 700 new public sites to the private
sector.
Never let a good crisis go to waste
The Mayor of Chicago, Rahm Emanuel, once said that the
elites should never let a good crisis go to waste. Simon
Coveney clearly agrees, using a crises caused by private
speculators to further enrich the private sector. There are at
least three good reasons why handing parcels of public land
to private developers should be opposed.
The most obvious one is the chronic lack of local authority
housing. Instead of owning 100% of the resulting housing
stock, the government have agreed a 30/70 spilt, with
developers selling the larger share at market value. This will
leave longer waiting lists than would otherwise be possible.
The second reason has to do with cost. The cost differential
between public and private is roughly 100,000, with
councils able to deliver houses for 200,000 versus
300,000 for the private sector. This will make private
houses unaffordable for the majority of the working
population and those on the waiting list.
The final reason centres on alternatives. Councils could use
direct capital expenditure or housing finance agency loans to
develop their own mixed tenure estates. People Before Profit
recently submitted such a plan to South Dublin County
Council, showing that real alternatives are, indeed, possible.
For ideological reasons they are not being implemented,
however.
Sinn Fin and Labour Support
In a recent opinion piece, Sinn Fins, Eoin Broin, likened
Coveneys policy to selling off the family silver. Pity then,
that Sinn Fin and the Labour Party are voting for these
Public Private Partnerships in local councils.
On April 10, South Dublin County Council voted to sell off
87.37 acres of public land in Kilcarbery the Grange. The site
is capable of supporting 892 housing units, but at least 550
will now go to the private sector. Sinn Fin and the Labour
Party voted for the initiative.
In Dublin City Council similar initiatives have been voted
through in ODevaney Gardens, Oscar Traynor Road and St
Michaels Estate. In each of these developments PPPs will
ensure that at least 50% of the houses will be lost to the
private sector.
As the largest group on Dublin City Council, Sinn
Fin played a significant role in ensuring that these plans
came to fruition, despite alternative proposals being
submitted by People Before Profit councillors and other left-
wing representatives. The Labour Party has also consistently
supported Sinn Fin in this regard, voting in favour of these
proposals at every stage.
Simon Coveney is currently engaged in a land grab of epic
proportions, but it wouldnt be possible without support of
Sinn Fin and the Labour Party.
Excellent analysis on our housing crisis

Opinion: 'Simon Coveney is currently engaged in a

land grab of epic proportions'
Despite endless promises from government ministers, the housing
situation is steadily deteriorating, writes Dr Brian O'Boyle.
THEJOURNAL.IE
http://www.thejournal.ie/readme/opinion-simon-coveney-is-currently-
engaged-in-a-land-grab-of-epic-proportions-3394082-May2017/?
utm_source=facebook_short
Leadership Election debate TONIGHT between Ministers Simon
Coveney and Leo Varadkar live on our Facebook page. Click the link
and select 'Get Reminder May 25th 2017
https://www.facebook.com/FineGael/videos/10155227006328211/?
hc_ref=PAGES_TIMELINE
Ireland does not punish 'white collar crime'
Only welfare crime

This Government and previous governments have failed the country by allowing white collar crime to run
unchecked and destroy our economy.

We dont usually put up full speeches on Facebook but since we've had so many email requests,
here is Pearse Doherty's speech in the Dil today on the shambolic investigation in Anglo and
the need to properly resource those who allowed the bankers off the hook.

Is there any Irish state institution not corrupt.

We have the political establishment, the judiciary, the DPPS office,the gardai, now we can
add to that the ODCE. ( Office of the director of corporate enforcement).
This is done to cover up what is happening in the "sewer" of high society, in this rotten corrupt
country.

Media are more interested in the Fine Gael vanity contest

than the humanitarian crisis of homelessness.

Meanwhile Simon is off doing this.

HIGHEST NUMBER OF ROUGH SLEEPERS RECORDED
'We now have children presenting on streets'
Inner City Helping Homeless (ICHH) last night Tuesday 23/5/2017
recorded the highest ever number of rough sleepers across the city.
Three outreach support teams found 173 people sleeping rough. Of
that 173, 133 were male, 38 were female and 2 were children.The
figure is in stark contrast with the annual count performed by the
Dublin Region Homeless Executive in April of this year. ICHH have
seen an increase in those presenting as rough sleeping over a
number of months with an 18% increase in a six week period.
Speaking today on the figure, ICHH CEO Anthony Flynn stated;
'This is a concerning and worrying increase, the number of those
sleeping rough is consistently on the increase month on month. The
figure is disappointing to say the least.A consolidated effort from all
agencies is now required and a full review of how service is
implemented is warranted immediately. We now have children
presenting on the streets with parents because of the lack of
resources.
Only last night a family with two young children had to sleep on an
office floor because the DRHE could not provide a hotel. Bed
closures in Wolfe Tone Quay have not helped he situation.The
situation is out of control and requires an immediate reformation of
the homeless summit.Enough money is being spent to provide
service that is clearly not hitting the ground. The Minister needs a
full reevaluation of the situation and he needs it now'
The circling of the wagons has worked...

Homeless couple with

two children among up to
a dozen families told to
seek shelter in garda
station as no beds could
be found
Cheryl Barnewell and her young sons Clayton and Rocco

A Dublin couple with two young children was among a dozen homeless
families whose only alternative to sleeping rough was to seek refuge at a garda
station due to the lack of emergency accommodation.

However, after making hundreds of phone calls to secure emergency shelter at

hotels and B&Bs on Tuesday, the young family from Finglas was even turned
away from spending the night in a garda cell.

They spent the night sleeping on the floor of a homelessness charity's office.

Hairdresser Cheryl Barnewell (26), her sons Clayton (9) and Rocco (23
months), and her partner, security guard Glen Concannon (26), said they were
told by officials from Focus Ireland's Homeless Action Team (HAT) that the
only option to ensure their safety was to present themselves at a garda station.

The team is contracted by Dublin City Council's Regional Homeless Executive

(DRHE) to assist homeless families in securing emergency accommodation.

Yet when the arrived at Finglas Garda Station, Ms Barnewell said a garda told
her: "There's nothing we can do for you. You can't stay here."

Despite her willingness to spend the night in a cell as a last resort, Ms

Barnewell said she was told even that was not an option.
Ms Barnewell spent Tuesday - as she does every day - ringing dozens of hotels
and B&Bs as far afield as Co Kildare and Co Meath to find emergency
accommodation for her family each night.

However, due to the seasonal influx of tourists and Saturday's Guns N' Roses
concert at Slane Castle, every hotel is completely booked.

Ms Barnewell said she was able to get five nights' accommodation at a hotel in
Ashbourne, but only after "raising hell" with DCC.

Focus Ireland director of advocacy Mike Allen confirmed the couple was
among a dozen homeless families with children whom they told to seek
accommodation at garda stations because nothing else was available.

We were informed [by DRHE] the only option for them was to go to the
guards," he told the Herald last night.

A spokeswoman for DRHE last night would only confirm that seven families
were instructed, as per the DRHE protocol, to seek shelter at garda stations.

"The Dublin Region Homeless Executive are aware that families presented to
garda stations last night," the spokeswoman said.

"There is a protocol in place whereby if accommodation cannot be sourced late

at night, even when we have invoked our contingency capacity, families are
brought by the Focus Ireland HAT team to garda stations to ensure safety for
the families concerned."

Appalling

However, Mr Allen said that the situation is totally unacceptable.

"It's an appalling situation and one that shouldn't be allowed to arise," he said.

He added that he raised the issue with outgoing Taoiseach Enda Kenny two
years ago.

"He said it wouldn't happen again yet here we are," he said.

"We looked as far as Drogheda [for accommodation] and that we'd pay for
taxis ourselves to go to Drogheda or beyond."

http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/homeless-couple-with-
two-children-among-up-to-a-dozen-families-told-to-seek-shelter-
in-garda-station-as-no-beds-could-be-found-35753889.html
What sort of society have Irish Politicians allowed to emerge? Shame on all politicians,

This story is all the more heart wrenching, when only last week the Irish Government
"donated" 6 Million to the Democratic Republic of Congo.
That 6 Million should have been used to look after our own people first

Shame on all Irish Politicians

12 homeless families with over

30 children told to present to
Garda stations as there were
no beds for them
There were no beds available for the families on Tuesday night.
May 25, 17
Image: RollingNews.ie
A TOTAL OF 12 homeless families with over 30 children
were told to present to Garda stations on Tuesday night, as
there was nowhere else for them to stay.
Homeless charity Focus Ireland said that a number of
homeless families presented at its coffee shop on Eustace
Street on Tuesday looking for help in sourcing
accommodation.
Focus said that on average about 25 to 30 self-
accommodating families go to the coffee shop daily for
assistance. These are families who are deemed homeless and
have to try source their own hotel accommodation on a daily
basis, which the council then pays for.
On this occasion, 12 families were unable to source any
accommodation. A number of emergency beds in homeless
hostels were also full.
The only option for these families was that they could go to
a Garda station, said Mike Allen, director of advocacy with
Focus Ireland.
Allen said that before this incident so far there had only
been one night where a single family couldnt source any
accommodation.
Never even in the worst circumstances have we had this
number, he said.
To have to say that to 12 families is absolutely shocking and
unprecedented.

Allen said that of the 11 families, three said they slept in

Fairview Park in north Dublin, another presented at Finglas
Garda Station but werent given shelter and slept in the
offices of homeless community organisation the Inner City
Helping Homeless.
Other families said they had stayed around Mountjoy Square
in Dublin city centre. The other families stayed in various
types of accommodation
Allen said that Focus had reconnected with 11 of the 12
families yesterday and that he believed they had sourced
available accommodation last night.
He said that the laws around who was responsible for
housing children and families in this situation were
too vague and needed to be clearer.
Weve been saying for more than two years that what is
required from local authorities in this circumstance is very
unclear, said Allen.
We need clear guidelines from the Government on this.
In a statement, the Dublin Regional Homeless Executive
which manages homeless services across the Dublin region
said that it was aware that seven families had presented to
Garda stations.
A spokesperson said that there was a protocol in place
whereby if families are unable to source accommodation
they are brought to Garda stations.
The spokesperson said that as of last night Dublin City
Council had doubled the volume of emergency contingency
capacity of beds available to any family presenting out of
hours in need of accommodation.
http://www.thejournal.ie/homeless-families-children-3407389-
May2017/

Come on IRISH MAMMIES.

Lets be having you.
Its now or never...
Cherish the children...
"A TOTAL OF 12 homeless families with over 30 children were told to present to
Garda stations on Tuesday night, as there was nowhere else for them to stay".

Vulture funds pay around 1 in

taxes for every 1 million they
hold in Irish assets'
Despite endless promises from government ministers, the housing
situation is steadily deteriorating, writes Dr Brian OBoyle.
May 25, 17

Dr Brian OBoyle
Economic advisor to People Before Profit
DYSFUNCTION IN THE housing sector has become the
defining crisis of our age. Despite endless promises from
government ministers, the housing situation is steadily
deteriorating.
Consider some of the facts. There are currently 7,472 people
classified as homeless, 2,563 of whom are children. This is a
record level of homelessness in the state. More than 75,000
families remain in mortgage arrears, 55,000 of whom have
not paid anything for more than 90 days. In the public
system things are no better. Around 130,000 families are
stuck on local authority waiting lists, some for more than
decade.
This has added to the current explosion in rental costs, with
prices rising by around 13% year on year.
Corporate giveaway
One reason for this crisis, is the historical drive to
commodify housing. Since the 1970s successive Irish
governments have run down the social and affordable
housing stock in a deliberate move to facilitate the private
sector.
To put some figures on this, more than 500,000 houses
were built during the early 2000s, with only 46,000
designated social and affordable. To make matters worse,
the State has sold off nearly 200,000 public units, whilst
Fine Gael have built virtually no local authority housing
since they came into office. This chronic undersupply is one
part of the problem.
The other part is the corporate give away. When it was
formed, the National Assets Management Agency (NAMA)
was touted as the solution to potential fire sales in the
property sector. NAMA was supposed to take distressed
assets off the balance sheets of the banks and hold them
until the market recovered.
This never happened. Instead, Fine Gael instructed NAMA
to engage in the fire sale it was meant to avoid. Up to 90% of
the property in NAMA went to Vulture Funds who, in turn,
used section 110 legislation to pay virtually nothing in taxes.
According to a recent report in the Sunday Business Post,
vulture funds pay around 1 in taxes for every 1 million
they hold in Irish assets. Between them International Funds
and local developers have hundreds of billions of property
assets and zoned land. The best way to get some of this land
into use would be to penalise those sitting on their assets.
Instead, FG wants to give 700 new public sites to the private
sector.
Never let a good crisis go to waste
The Mayor of Chicago, Rahm Emanuel, once said that the
elites should never let a good crisis go to waste. Simon
Coveney clearly agrees, using a crises caused by private
speculators to further enrich the private sector. There are at
least three good reasons why handing parcels of public land
to private developers should be opposed.
The most obvious one is the chronic lack of local authority
housing. Instead of owning 100% of the resulting housing
stock, the government have agreed a 30/70 spilt, with
developers selling the larger share at market value. This will
leave longer waiting lists than would otherwise be possible.
The second reason has to do with cost. The cost differential
between public and private is roughly 100,000, with
councils able to deliver houses for 200,000 versus
300,000 for the private sector. This will make private
houses unaffordable for the majority of the working
population and those on the waiting list.
The final reason centres on alternatives. Councils could use
direct capital expenditure or housing finance agency loans to
develop their own mixed tenure estates. People Before Profit
recently submitted such a plan to South Dublin County
Council, showing that real alternatives are, indeed, possible.
For ideological reasons they are not being implemented,
however.
Sinn Fin and Labour Support
In a recent opinion piece, Sinn Fins, Eoin Broin, likened
Coveneys policy to selling off the family silver. Pity then,
that Sinn Fin and the Labour Party are voting for these
Public Private Partnerships in local councils.
On April 10, South Dublin County Council voted to sell off
87.37 acres of public land in Kilcarbery the Grange. The site
is capable of supporting 892 housing units, but at least 550
will now go to the private sector. Sinn Fin and the Labour
Party voted for the initiative.
In Dublin City Council similar initiatives have been voted
through in ODevaney Gardens, Oscar Traynor Road and St
Michaels Estate. In each of these developments PPPs will
ensure that at least 50% of the houses will be lost to the
private sector.
As the largest group on Dublin City Council, Sinn
Fin played a significant role in ensuring that these plans
came to fruition, despite alternative proposals being
submitted by People Before Profit councillors and other left-
wing representatives. The Labour Party has also consistently
supported Sinn Fin in this regard, voting in favour of these
proposals at every stage.
Simon Coveney is currently engaged in a land grab of epic
proportions, but it wouldnt be possible without support of
Sinn Fin and the Labour Party.
http://www.thejournal.ie/readme/opinion-simon-coveney-is-currently-
engaged-in-a-land-grab-of-epic-proportions-3394082-May2017/
Blame politicians all you like but the truth is that none of this would be happening if the Irish
People didn't keep voting for it so they must be okay with this level of corruption. After all it's
not as if it was sprung on us yesterday so to claim that people were not informed as to the
corruption is just bunk. We have had 10 years of this and two elections and we still suffer the
same corruption. In fact it has worsened and now it's so blatant they don't care what you
think.

Ignorance is not an excuse in the age of the internet.

It just isn't...

Voices: "Dysfunction in the housing sector has become the defining crisis of our age. Despite
endless promises from government ministers, the housing situation is steadily deteriorating.
Consider some of the facts. There are currently 7,472 people classified as homeless, 2,563
of whom are children. This is a record level of homelessness in the state. More than 75,000
families remain in mortgage arrears, 55,000 of whom have not paid anything for more than 90
days. In the public system things are no better. Around 130,000 families are stuck on local
authority waiting lists, some for more than decade.

Only 22 rapid-build homes

finished for homeless
 families
Simon Coveney vowed 300 homes would be built or under
construction by end of 2016
Mon, Jan 2, 2017, 01:00
Olivia Kelly

Minister for Housing Simon Coveney: at the beginning of November he

committed to having more than 300 rapid delivery homes under construction
by year end. Photograph: Dara Mac Dnaill
Only 22 modular houses for homeless families have been
completed, with 130 more under construction, according
to end of year figures from the four Dublin local
authorities.
This is despite assurances from Minister for Housing
Simon Coveney just two months ago that more than 300
modular or rapid build houses would be completed or
under construction by the end of 2016.
To date only Dublin City Council has built, or started
building, any modular homes which were first proposed
as a response to housing shortages in the city.
Under the Governments Rebuilding Ireland housing
action plan, published last July, 200 rapid-build homes
were to be completed by the end of last year.
Smart initiative by Peter McVerry Trust breathes new
life into vacant city homes
 Home repossession: 75% of owners fail to show in
court
Six reasons for the rental crisis - and why free beer
may be the answer
Mr Coveney at the beginning of November committed to
having more than 300 rapid delivery homes under
construction by year end.
These were in addition to the homes already built by the
city council in Ballymun the only modular homes yet
completed in Dublin.
The 22 houses in Poppintree, Ballymun, had been due
for completion in December 2015, but were not occupied
until May 2016. The council last October started work on
its second batch of rapid-build houses, 39 two- and
three-bedroom houses a site at St Helenas Drive,
Finglas, which it said would take eight months to
complete.
Three sites
It has since started work on three other sites Mourne
Road in Drimnagh, where 29 houses are planned,
Belcamp in Darndale, with 38 homes, and Cherry
Orchard, with 24 homes, which it expects to finish in
2017.
Last month, it sought providers for 70 more houses at
sites in Cherry Orchard and Finglas, but these are not
due for completion until February 2018, tender
documents show.
Of the three other Dublin local authorities, Fingal
County Council is the most advanced and has advertised
tenders for two schemes, a development of 20 houses in
Dublin 15, where construction is expected to start early
in the new year, and another in Balbriggan where it has
proposed 25 houses.

South Dublin County Council expects to go to tender

within the next week for 85 rapid-build homes at St
Aidans off Brookfield Road in Tallaght. It estimates that
71 of these homes will be completed by July, with the
remaining homes due to be finished by the end of the
year. It hopes to locate modular housing at four other
sites at a later date.
Dn Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council has gone to
tender for 12 homes at Georges Place, Dn Laoghaire,
which it expects to have completed by the fourth quarter
of 2017. A further 28 homes will be provided at
Churchtown this year while a feasibility study is being
undertaken to assess lands in Glenamuck for 14 homes.
http://www.irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/only-22-rapid-build-
homes-finished-for-homeless-families-1.2922766

Campaigners have claimed the Housing Minister Simon

Coveney has dropped the ball in relation to the crisis

26 May 2017
WS
A new record high of over 7,600 people were homeless in
April according to the latest figures from the Department
of Housing.
The statistics - which only came to light late last night - show
that more than 2,700 of these are children.
It is the 13th consecutive month that the number of people in
need of emergency accommodation has risen.
There are now 1,300 families homeless in Ireland - an
increase of 26% on April 2016.
It comes as homeless charities revealed families in need of
shelter are now being told to go to Garda stations due to a
lack of emergency accommodation.
"Dropped the ball"
Homelessness campaigners have claimed the Housing
Minister Simon Coveney has dropped the ball in relation to
the crisis as he continues his campaign to become the next
leader of Fine Gael.
Anthony Flynn CEO of Inner City Helping Homeless says the
record numbers are completely unacceptable.
We have seen promise after promise in regard to the end of
emergency accommodation use by Minister Simon Coveney,
he said. I think the figures indicate that that is not going to
happen by July.
We havent seen a month-on-month reduction in those figures
in any way shape or form.
Things are only getting worse and with what happened this
week, with families being referred to garda stations and having
to sleep on office floors and charity office it is proof in the
pudding that it is not going to happen by July.
Mr Flynn said he believes the minister has been too
concentrated on the Fine Gael leadership battle as the
housing crisis deepens.
The eye has been taken off the ball to a certain extent, he
said. We are in crisis. We have seen this creeping up on us
for long time.
Father McVerry was quoted saying there was going to be a
homeless tsunami the tsunami has hit us, we are seeing
children out there on the streets and being referred to garda
stations.
The problem is here and now. The problem needs to be fixed,
it needs to be addressed; we need to stop looking at the
longer term and focus on short to medium term issues.
A "line in the sand"
In a statement as the numbers were announced,
homelessness charity Focus Ireland the latest figures must be
seen as a line in the sand for the government.
They must see this cannot continue, reads the statement.
"These highly disappointing figures come in what has been a
distressing week for a number of families who are homeless.
Minister Coveney has put in place a range of effective
measures, and cannot be faulted for the energy he has
brought to the task, but the continued rise in homelessness
shows that these efforts need to be redoubled and require the
full support across all Government departments.''
Extra emergency accommodation
Meanwhile the Minister of State for Housing and Urban
Renewal has said new emergency accommodation has been
added to the system to strop families from having to sleep in
public parks.
It comes after four families slept in parks on Tuesday night,
when neither local authorities nor housing charities could find
commercial space for them.
It is thought to be the first time that emergency
accommodation could not be found, in any venue, for
homeless families.
Meanwhile, speaking in the Dil, the Tnaiste Frances
Fitzgerald has defended the governments housing strategy,
insisting that while this weeks events were unacceptable,
the strategy is working.
Homeless people are being told to go to Garda stations for help, according
to campaigners.

A Dublin group is warning they've recorded the highest ever number of rough
sleepers across the city.

Inner City Helping Homeless found 173 people on the streets on Tuesday night -
among them 38 women and two children.
Focus Ireland put the number of homeless families in Dublin at "well over a
thousand".

"There were no hotel rooms, there were no emergency beds for 11 families, and
the only thing on offer for you is to go the Garda station, and we had to give that
advice as the only recourse," Mike Allen of Focus Ireland told Newstalk Breakfast.

"They go to the Garda stations, they're told 'nothing we can do, we'd have to
arrest you'. Sometimes they're put in a place in a security by the guards. Very
often, the families won't go to the Garda station."

Mr Allen said three families spent the night in Fairview Park in Dublin.

"The fundamental thing about this story is that it has to be seen as absolutely
wrong," he continued.

"There's no law that has been broken - nobody has failed to meet their statutory
duties [...] There doesn't appear to be any obligation on the state, on the
Taoiseach, on the government, even when they've been found homeless, even
when they have children in their care."

'Additional capacity'
In the Dil this afternoon, Junior Housing Minister Damien English says more
accommodation was added to the system yesterday.

He told deputies: "I understand that the issue of contingency capacity for families
was a matter which was on Dublin City Council's agenda prior to Tuesday night."

He said that while the new accommodation arrived a "day too late" for the families
affected on Tuesday, "it is of some reassurance that this additional capacity now
exists within the system".

Unacceptable'
Tnaiste Frances Fitzgerald has described the situation as 'unacceptable'.

Her comments came as the Government and Fianna Fil united this lunchtime to
vote down emergency legislation to tackle the homeless crisis from Solidarity-
People Before Profit.

Mrs Fitzgerald said the Government's taking every initiative possible to deal with
the housing crisis and this week wasn't normal.

In the Dil this afternoon, Minister Fitzgerald defended the government's housing
strategy - insisting that while progress may be slow, the strategy is reaping
dividends.
Every effort is being made to ensure that families get accommodation through the
use of the HAP (Housing Assisted Payment), through social bills and encouraging
private supply as well, she said.

All of those initiatives will come more and more into play.

"The energy has been misplaced"

On the issue of homeless families and emergency accommodation, Mr Allen said
Apollo House were right not to take in families.

However, he added that the answer to the crisis is not more emergency
accommodation.

"Rough sleeping is back up to very high levels. The answer is preventing people
from losing their homes, and getting people homes, not more and more
emergency beds.

"Huge amount of energy has gone into it by Minister Simon Coveney and local
authorities, that's to be admired [...] Unfortunately the energy has been
misplaced.

"If they put the same amount of energy into commitment into preventing families
from being turfed out of their rented homes from banks that we own, from vulture
funds that we sold [...] We would have a more positive affect than we would be
saying."

A new study - carried out by the Simon Community - has

found that the supply of housing for people receiving rent
benefits is extremely low.
The organisation is launching its 'Locked out of the market'
study this morning, which looked at 600 properties in 11 areas
across the country.
The study found that 88% of the rental properties looked at
are beyond the reach of Rent Supplement and the Housing
Assistant Payments scheme during a three-day long
'snapshot' study of the market.
Of the available 12%, only two of these properties were
available to rent for a single person within Rent
Supplement/Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) limits and
only seven properties were available to couples.
As recently as November of last year 17% of available rental
properties fit into the Rent Supplement and Housing Assistant
Payments scheme.
Niamh Randall, National Spokesperson for the Simon
Communities, commented on the report: "The once off
increase in Rent Supplement/HAP limits in July last year has
meant that they payments have not kept pace with rising
rental payments. There has been a decrease in the number of
properties available to people within these limits since our last
study in November 2016 and that is following a drop in the
August 2016 study too.
"While discretionary uplifts are available these are done on a
on a case-by-case basis which is not an adequate policy
solution; it is also extremely stressful for families and
individuals and resource-intensive to undertake."
She added that Ireland's escalating rents are making people
homeless: "Irelands private rented market is not working.
People who rent have very little security and can face
increases in rent that they cannot meet. Many people who are
becoming homeless are coming from the private rental sector.
They have lost their home and cannot afford to put a roof over
their heads. Some stay with extended family and, when that
fails, they enter homelessness."
The average monthly rent now stands at over 1,100 - that's up 134 a
month in the last year.
Daft.ie's latest report warns that prices are soaring as supply plummets.

Rents in Dublin are now 66% higher than at their lowest point in 2011, while
outside the capital they are up 41%.

Between January and March, rents rose by 13.4% - with an increase of 13.9% in
Dublin.

Availability continues to be a major issue, with only 3,100 properties available to

rent nationwide on May 1st - compared to almost 4,000 three months previously.

Rents are continuing to rise above the previous 2008 peaks.

The report notes: "In Dublin, rents are now an average of 15.4% above their
previous peak while in Cork and Galway cities, rents are 9.7% and 17.8% above
levels recorded nine years ago.

"Outside the cities, the average rent is 3% above its previous peak."

Economist Ronan Lyons, author of the report, says there are some very
concerning findings.

Speaking on Newstalk Breakfast, he explained: "We just have a growing

population, and not enough supply being built.

"Is it healthy? Absolutely not. Is it sustainable? Well in the sense that we have
strong demand there, then unfortunately this is going to continue.

"This is a problem that unfortunately is going to get worse before it gets better,"
he added.

Housing and homeless groups have been reacting to the latest figures.

Peter McVerry Trust CEO Pat Doyle argued: The report paints a deeply worrying
picture and shows the current situation is unsustainable. Tenants are under huge
pressure, and those people who are dependent on the rental system for their
housing needs are looking at rents that are up to 15% higher than the Celtic Tiger
peak with the lowest number of properties to rent since 2006.

"Our concern is that rapidly rising rents this will lead to more tenants becoming
homeless.

The Simon Community said that the high rents and low supply mean that people
are experiencing difficulties in "finding and sustaining affordable homes".

However, Stephen Faughnan of the Irish Property Owners Association claimed

that the State has "punished landlords that kept their rents low".

He suggested: "Government interference in the market - including unfair tax

treatment, closing bedsits, two year rent freeze, 4% rent control, complex
legislative compliance - all have a long term effect, increasing costs and
damaging the market."

The average monthly rent now stands at over 1,100 - that's up 134 a
month in the last year.

Daft.ie's latest report warns that prices are soaring as supply plummets.

Rents in Dublin are now 66% higher than at their lowest point in 2011
http://www.daft.ie/blog/wp-
content/uploads/2015/02/Daft_Report_Rental_Q1_2017.pdf

More people cannot lose their homes. Support #simonlockedout by

liking & sharing our video may 25th 2017
https://scontent-ams3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t43.1792-
4/18536369_1788986611429515_4424640819751813120_n.mp4?
efg=eyJ2ZW5jb2RlX3RhZyI6InN2ZV9oZCJ9&oh=8a2cbde3ec1e7d8d
10ef5c7d0af79cfc&oe=59282895

1,302 families with 2,708 homeless

children in Ireland. 2017
4,972 adults, giving a combined
number of 7,680 people.

Record high: There are over

2,700 children and almost
5,000 adults homeless in
Ireland
The number of homeless people has more than doubled since
December 2014.

THERE WERE OVER 2,700 homeless children staying in

emergency accommodation on a single week last month, a
new record high.
Latest figures from the Housing Department show that there
were 1,302 families with 2,708 homeless children staying in
emergency accommodation in Ireland.
As well as this, there were 4,972 adults, giving a combined
number of 7,680 people.
This surpasses all previous months, setting a record high for
number of homeless people in Ireland over the past number
of decades. There were 7,552 homeless people last month (a
rise of 128).
The number of homeless people has more than doubled
since December 2014, when there were 3,738 homeless
staying in emergency accommodation.
Dublin has by far the largest number of homeless adults and
children. There were 3,337 homeless adults in Dublin last
month, as well as 2,262 children.
Housing Department figures only measure the number of
homeless people staying in State-funded emergency
accommodation (like hostels, hotels, etc) and so does not
count rough sleepers, people sleeping on couches, staying
with family, etc.

So the number of actual homeless people is certainly higher.

The figures come following a tumultuous week for homeless
services in Dublin. It was reported yesterday that 12 families
with over 30 children were told to present to Garda stations
for shelter as there was no accommodation available for
them.
One of the families slept in the offices of homeless
community organisation Inner City Helping Homeless.
Commenting on the figures, director of ICHH Anthony
Flynn said that no proper planning was in place to help
people in need.
Yet again we are seeing no improvement in the homeless
crisis in Ireland as proper planning is not in place to assist
these people in the short-term, said Flynn.
Sinn Fin housing spokesperson Eoin Broin said
Government policy was failing homeless people in need.
The Minister for Housing must do more to keep families in
their homes, said Broin.
He must also secure emergency funding to put a roof over
the heads of families that have been in emergency
accommodation or more than six months.
A spokesperson for homeless charity Focus Ireland said that
the figures were highly disappointing.

A TOTAL OF 12 homeless families with over 30 children

were told to present to Garda stations on Tuesday night, as
there was nowhere else for them to stay.
Homeless charity Focus Ireland said that a number of
homeless families presented at its coffee shop on Eustace
Street on Tuesday looking for help in sourcing
accommodation.
Focus said that on average about 25 to 30 self-
accommodating families go to the coffee shop daily for
assistance. These are families who are deemed homeless and
have to try source their own hotel accommodation on a daily
basis, which the council then pays for.
On this occasion, 12 families were unable to source any
accommodation. A number of emergency beds in homeless
hostels were also full.
The only option for these families was that they could go to
a Garda station, said Mike Allen, director of advocacy with
Focus Ireland.
Allen said that before this incident so far there had only
been one night where a single family couldnt source any
accommodation.
Never even in the worst circumstances have we had this
number, he said.
To have to say that to 12 families is absolutely shocking and
unprecedented.

Allen said that of the 11 families, three said they slept in

Fairview Park in north Dublin, another presented at Finglas
Garda Station but werent given shelter and slept in the
offices of homeless community organisation the Inner City
Helping Homeless.
Other families said they had stayed around Mountjoy Square
in Dublin city centre. The other families stayed in various
types of accommodation
Allen said that Focus had reconnected with 11 of the 12
families yesterday and that he believed they had sourced
available accommodation last night.
He said that the laws around who was responsible for
housing children and families in this situation were
too vague and needed to be clearer.
Weve been saying for more than two years that what is
required from local authorities in this circumstance is very
unclear, said Allen.
We need clear guidelines from the Government on this.
In a statement, the Dublin Regional Homeless Executive
which manages homeless services across the Dublin region
said that it was aware that seven families had presented to
Garda stations.
A spokesperson said that there was a protocol in place
whereby if families are unable to source accommodation
they are brought to Garda stations.
The spokesperson said that as of last night Dublin City
Council had doubled the volume of emergency contingency
capacity of beds available to any family presenting out of
hours in need of accommodation.
These numbers must be seen as a line in the sand by the
whole of government, said a spokesperson.
They must see this cannot continue.
http://www.thejournal.ie/homeless-figures-2-3409364-May2017/?
utm_source=shortlink

The Department of Housing, Planning, Community & Local

Government Homelessness Report April 2017
http://www.housing.gov.ie/sites/default/files/publications/files/homel
ess_report_-_april_2017.pdf
Now, each workhouse had a specific section predominantly
for night lodgers or casuals as the people were called.
These sections were kept for what were known as vagrants at
the time: wandering homeless men, women and children
who only stayed for a limited time at each workhouse.
A look at the records from 1899-1900 shows us in the region
of 3,000-4,000 of these type of lodgers being relieved in
the workhouses each week. Also, remember that were
talking about the island of Ireland at this stage and not just
the Republic.
The estimated population at this period was about 4.5
million people (roughly the same as today).
Figures continuing up until the workhouses were largely
closed and converted into county homes, asylums and other
institutions show a similar pattern of decline.
The workhouse homeless
Is it right, then, to categorise only the night lodgers or
vagrants of this period as homeless? What about the Idiots
and Lunatics (as they were called at the time) who were
made to stay in the workhouses?
The general population of the workhouses went there as they
were poor, hungry and destitute and could not support
themselves or their families anymore. While they may have
entered the workhouses out of poverty (rather than
necessarily lack of shelter), by todays definition of
homelessness in Ireland, these people would likely be called
homeless.
File photo of the Famine graveyard behind the stone 'fever hospital' built on
the site of the workhouse where hundreds of Irish famine victims died.
Source: Shutterstock/Susilyn
Under the definition in the Housing Act, a person is
homeless if:
he is living in a hospital, county home, night shelter or
other such institution, and is so living because he has no
accommodation which he (or she) can be reasonably
expected to reside in.
So under that definition, the 56,000 resident in workhouses
in 1866-67; or the 41,000 in 1899-1900 could be regarded as
homeless. That would be 6-8 times more than is counted
now.
Another interesting count of homeless people is given in The
Report of the Commission on the Relief of the Sick and
Destitute Poor, Including the Insane Poor in 1928.
This report states that the garda were instructed to count
the number of homeless persons observed wandering on
the public highways in a single night in November, 1925.
That number came up with 3,257 men, women and children
in total (but again is a very different type of count than we
have today).
Throughout the 20th century
The workhouse figures gave some indication of the numbers
of homeless people both vagrants and families in need of
help towards the end of the 19th century and in the
beginning of the 20th.
Upon their closure, figures of homelessness are hard to
come by.
Like we talked about already, it was mostly independent
charities working outside of State monitoring that kept
figures for their own shelters and hostels.
For obvious reasons, these figures are hard to come by and
arent a reliable gauge of the numbers of homeless people in
the country.
What we do know is that homelessness wasnt considered an
important political issue through much of the 20th century,
and certainly didnt occupy the public consciousness as it
does now.
The issue came to more prominence in the 1980s,
culminating the passing of the 1988 Housing Act.
Conclusion
From everything weve looked at, it is clear that
homelessness has gotten worse in Ireland over the past
number of years; it is also clear that the way in which
homelessness is measured has changed drastically in the
past century.
How we view the homeless, how we treat marginalised
groups in society, how we care for people and how we view
social problems have all changed hugely in the past 150
years.
At the risk of sounding like a broken record, comparing
todays homelessness figures to even 10 years ago poses
problems, never mind 100 years ago.
But there is no comparison now between the number of
homeless people today and the numbers in workhouses at
the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries.
Homelessness is today in Ireland a pressing and worsening
social issue, but it cannot be compared in terms of scale and
devastation to the Great Famine and the years that followed.
However, while the people who suffered in the years after
the Famine in workhouses would certainly be considered
homeless under todays definition, they werent what was
known as vagrants or night lodgers then.
That said, todays numbers of homeless people are at the
highest they have been in recent years, and the problem
continues to get worse. The new measurement brought in
since 2014 highlights the importance of properly
categorising and counting the number of homeless people.
The fact is that people in workhouses were treated terribly,
and were not known then under the popular definition of
homeless. Still, as we have said, by todays standards they
certainly would have been.
Taking all that into consideration, we rate this claim:
Mostly-FALSE
As our verdicts guide explains, this means:
There is an element of truth in the claim, but it is missing
critical details or context. Or, the best available evidence
weighs against the claim.
Its clear that Ireland is in the midst of a housing and
homelessness crisis. Its also clear that the problem has
continued to worsen over the past number of years and
looks likely to do so further.
Despite not having consistent figures, it also seems that
homelessness is at its higher point now than at other points
since the latter half of 20th century.
However, when compared to the poverty and destitution
experienced be people in the latter half of the 19th century,
the problem is not as bad as records show was the case then.
But without proper figures to go by to directly relate
different time periods, its impossible to directly compare the
numbers in any meaningful way.

Commission on Relief of the Sick and

Destitute Poor including the Insane Poor
appointed on the 19th March 1925

Magdalene Laundries, Furniture stores, closed industrial

schools to now be used as sheltered accommodation for
"displaced families" Big big money...
Wonder what qualifies you to be a member of a quango?
Lets take a look at money spent on direct provision.. another
contentious human rights issue...
The State has given more than 850 million to
private firms for the provision of accommodation
and food since the direct provision system was
established. Many of these companies are large
firms involved in the property, hospitality or catering
business. Several have moved to shield their
company accounts from public scrutiny and, in some
cases, their beneficial owners include companies in
offshore jurisdictions such as the Isle of Man or
British Virgin Islands. Mosney has been the biggest
recipient of public funding (101 million), followed
by East Coast Catering (91 million), which runs
three centres in Dublin and Dundalk.
WHO is getting this money..
We need to demand transparency.
Thoughts?
With the object of devising permanent legislation
for the effective and economical relief of the sick
and destitute poor, to inquire into the laws and
administration relating thereto and particularly as
regards the following matters :- 1. To inquire into
the adequacy and suitability of schemes which
have been formulated under the Local Government
(Temporary Provisions) Act, 1923, and make
recommendations. 2. To advise as to whether the
existing Law and Regulations as regards Home
Assistance require alteration towards securing that
due provision is made for the sick and destitute
poor in their own homes without avoidable
wasteful expenditure on healthy persons who are
incorrigibly idle. 3. To examine the law and
administration affecting the relief of the following
destitute classes and to make recommendations:
(a) Widows and theif children. (b) Children without
parents. (c) Unmarried mothers and their children.
(d) Deserted children. 4. To inquire into the existing
provision in public institutions for the care and
treatment of mentally defective persons and to
advise as to whether more efficient methods can
be introduced especially as regards the care and
training of mentally defective children. due regard
being had to the expense involved. 5. As regards
cost of relief of the destitute poor generally to
inquire as to whether any change in law is
desirable towards securing more equitable
chargeability on local rates for persons who having
been in fact normally resident in one poor relief
district have become a charge upon the rates of
another district.

Homelessness crisis: Is the

Government incompetent or
disingenuous?
Analysis: Rent control and security of tenure among key
solutions
about 19 hours ago

Kitty Holland
 The old Bargaintown building on Greencastle Parade, Coolock, which is being
converted to a family hub for homeless people. Photograph: Dave
Meehan/The Irish Times
May 26, 17
To listen to Taoiseach Enda Kenny, Minister for Housing
Simon Coveney and most recently Tnaiste Frances
Fitzgerald, hold forth on the plight of the spiralling
number of homeless children, one would conclude they
cared.
Increasingly however, one is forced to wonder: Is this
Government incompetent on the homelessness crisis, or
disingenuous?
In November 2014, when there were 680 homeless
children in Dublin, Kenny told the Dil: Clearly there is
an emergency here for many of these cases and nobody
wants to see a family out on the street, much less
children on the street.
By the following November there were 1,466 children, in
705 families, homeless in Dublin.
In November 2016, the numbers had climbed to 2,110
children in 1,023 families. The following month, Coveney
said solving the homelessness crisis was his top
priority.
Coveney criticises authority after families sent to
Garda stations
 Homeless, bedless and outside a Garda station at
10.30pm
Homelessness crisis envelops a spiralling number of
children
If the State cannot look after people who literally do not
have a roof over their heads, we have to ask ourselves
some very serious questions, he said.
On Thursday, Fitzgerald was in the Dil responding to
emerging details of 12 families, including more than 30
children, having been directed to Garda stations last
Tuesday as there were no emergency beds.
Shortly after she spoke in the Dil, the latest
homelessness figures were published by the Department
of Housing showing the number of homeless children in
Dublin rose last month to 2,262 in 1,091 families.
Fitzgerald commented: Quite clearly, Garda stations are
not suitable places for families to be redirected to in any
circumstances.
Real listening
The words of successive Ministers on this issue now
sound so hollow one wonders why they bother. Far more
useful would be some real listening to the pleas from
Focus Ireland, the Ombudsman for Childrens Office,
Barnardos, the Irish Human Rights and Equality
Commission, the Irish Society for the Prevention of
Cruelty to Children and even the United Nations that the
Government intervene with robust action to protect
families trapped in the private rented sector.
Measures should include rent controls pegging increases
to the consumer price index, increased security of
tenure, and, protections for tenants in buy-to-lets
subject to repossession. Families that become homeless
should be guaranteed to spend no longer than six weeks
in emergency accommodation, while hotels with rooms
available which turn homeless families away should face
losing their preferential 9 per cent VAT rating.
Many would also argue that developers, under Part V of
the Planning and Development Act, should be mandated
to provide far more than the current 10 per cent of
housing units for social housing.
Such measures would make a difference and stem the
flow of children into homelessness. Instead, it seems, all
these homeless children and their families are to be
offered are family hubs former industrial buildings,
Magdalene laundries and bargain furniture shops
converted into glorified apartment hotels.
A knowledgeable source, formerly in a Dublin local
authority, said in 2014 that no government would ever
take homelessness seriously until it affected their voters.
His words are ringing a lot truer than any Government
Ministers.
The State takes care of its own.
The concept of 'human rights' is not important.
"The words of successive Ministers on this issue now sound
so hollow one wonders why they bother. Far more useful
would be some real listening to the pleas from Focus
Ireland, the Ombudsman for Childrens Office, Barnardos,
the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission, the Irish
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children and even
the United Nations that the Government intervene with
robust action to protect families trapped in the private rented
sector.
Measures should include rent controls pegging increases to
the consumer price index, increased security of tenure, and,
protections for tenants in buy-to-lets subject to
repossession. Families that become homeless should be
guaranteed to spend no longer than six weeks in
emergency accommodation, while hotels with rooms
available which turn homeless families away should face
losing their preferential 9 per cent VAT rating".
More fodder.

http://www.irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/homelessness-crisis-is-
the-government-incompetent-or-disingenuous-
1.3096810#.WShdXrarRDp.facebook
Spring cleaning the Eurozones Banking
Union: ECB publishes final supervisory
guidance to banks on non-performing loans
and exposures
22 March 2017
The final countdown from Europe on NPLs (Non
Performing Loans.)
Appears to be bad news for some vulture funds and
others who are not 'catered ' for in the package.
One would wonder if the vultures have already flown
away....
NEW RULES DO NOT APPLY TO (BUT MAY BE OF
INTEREST FOR):
entities regulated as financial holding companies
and mixed financial holding companies;
credit institutions and which are, for Banking
Union supervisory purposes, categorised as Less
Significant Institutions (LSIs) and thus subject to
indirect ECB supervision (ca. 5,000+ firms);
entities regulated as credit institutions but which
operate outside the supervisory scope of Banking
Union (i.e. domestic banks in the United Kingdom
with no presence in the Eurozone);
branches of credit institutions in non-participating
Banking Union Member States;
lenders that are not categorised and regulated as
a
credit institution (i.e. an Alternative Investment
Fund Management vehicle managing a private debt
fund or certain peer to peer lending platforms ); or
providers of NPL management and servicing
solutions, summarised herein as Non-NPL Firms

http://www.allenovery.com/SiteCollectionDocuments/Spring_cleaning
_the_Eurozone_s_Banking_Union_20892.pdf

In mortgage distress and facing

court?
Confused about using 'proportionality
of contract as a defense?
Read carefully to understand.
Then go read your contract over and
over and pick out what you consider
to be an 'unfair term'
Don't be afraid.
You are stronger and wiser than you
think.
Take your time.
Use the Law to your advantage.
"Should the Courts consider whether
mortgage
terms are unfair, even if not asked
to do so?
Barrett J delivered his judgment in
Allied Irish Banks PLC v Counihan on
21 December 2016 in which he stated
that the Court has a general
obligation
to establish if any terms in a
mortgage
contract are unfair, even if the Court
has not been specifically asked to do
so.
This was on the basis of the decision
of
the European Court of Justice in Aziz,
in
which the ECJ ruled that a national
court
should assess (even if not asked to do
so)
whether any term of a contract that is
within the scope of the Unfair
Contract
Terms Directive is unfair.
While the Court did not find any term
to be unfair in this particular case, it
should be noted that if a contract
term
is found to be unfair, that term will
NOT
BE BINDING on the CONSUMER
although
the contract WILL continue to exist if
it is
possible for it to do so without that
term".

Homelessness Has Become A Business And Socially Acceptable By Corrupt

TDs And Landlords Sitting in the Dial

May 26, 2017

 Anthony Flynn, of Inner City Helping Homeless, and new figures
from the Department of Housing
Last night.
Just before the Fine Gael leadership debate in the Red Cow Inn, Dublin.

During which contender and Minister for Housing Simon Coveney said
the party needs to represent both the man in a sleeping bag on
Grafton Street tonight as well as the man creating 1,000 jobs.
The latest homelessness report, for the week April 24-April 30, 2017
from the Department of Housing was released, showing that the number
of people who are homeless has reached a new record high
of 7,680 4972 adults and 2,708 children.
The figure surpassed 7,000 for the first time ever in December 2016.
Further to this

Last night.

Anthony Flynn, of Inner City Helping Homeless, wrote:

The last number of days have been fairly chaotic when it comes to
homelessness. Tuesday in particular, we saw the highest ever recorded
number of rough sleepers and a drastic situation of no hotel/B&B
accommodation for 12 families.

This led to a frenzy of supports required to be put in place and services

increased to cope with demand. A number of families were referred
to Garda stations as there was nowhere else to go. One such
family had to be accommodated within our offices until supports
could be put in place Wednesday morning. Some of those that were
affected slept in tents others in cars.
How did we come to this situation?

A lack of short to medium-term planning is the best answer I can give. A

complete lack of inter-agency communication and a lack of will
from the powers-that-be. The eye has been taken off the ball in regard
to homelessness and the long-term planning aspect has left short-term
problems. Homelessness has become a crisis right across the State but
hasnt been treated as such. Our volunteers deal with thousands of
individuals weekly, many of whom have become lost in a system of no
hope.
I have spent the last four years in a voluntary position within Inner City
Helping Homeless; I have met an abundance of people, from homeless
to colleagues. I have made some great friends and am privileged to lead
an organisation that shows empathy, compassion and is made up of
decent human beings.

This week however, I can say that it has been the worst week I have
seen within the homeless sector. Up to 30 children refused
accommodation, whilst those who are charged with solving our
homeless crisis enjoy their evening off.
Families sent from pillar to post in order to be left with no hope, no
accommodation and no home. Homeless has become an epidemic, a
plague that has spread so wide across our city and state.
Homelessness has become a business, a sector, it cost in excess
of 100million a year to operate. To some that means profit, which
in turn means that homelessness will remain.
This however should not take away from our responsibilities, people are
suffering.
Children are being now left on the streets, a prediction that Father
Peter McVerry made only a year ago. Homelessness has become
socially acceptable. It has become tolerable to pass somebody by in a
doorway, it has become bearable to leave families stuck in hotels, and
now, this week, it has become justifiable to leave children without a bed.
This is the truth. These charities are there to give the
Government a way out of actually helping the people of this
country. Charities reduce people's expectations and rights to
a mere sleeping bag in a doorway or a cot in a drug-user-
laden hostel, if you are lucky, because charities can't fix the
problem and these people have nowhere else to turn to
when homeless.
These charities also allow the general public to feel that
"something is being done" when in reality very little is
being done to SOLVE the problem of homelessness
because charities can't solve this problem. They
were never meant to solve it.
In fact all that these charities have become are a
means to temporarily maintain and keep this crisis
from falling off a cliff while the Government gains
the cover for not doing anything to end this crisis.
Charities are handling it instead and doing very little
to change this status quo and challenge the
Government into real and lasting action because
they need to defend and justify their existence
too....
""Homelessness has become a business, a sector, it
cost in excess of 100 million a year to operate. To
some that means profit, which in turn means that
homelessness will remain.""
And as long as the problem of homelessness
continues to be ignored and passed off onto these
charities by the very entity that is actually
responsible for the welfare of the people then you
can be sure nothing will ever be done....

Those quotes come from a time when Sinn Fein were a threat to the Establishment.
Now, they are the Establishment.
And he's going to do this while bitch bashing the strongest nationalist party both sides of the
border... He's some buck to be all the one buck
Eamon Dunphy speaks of Enda Kenny's shameful legacy, and Fine Gael's disastrous pro-rich, pro-EU
misgoverning of the Irish people on RTE The Ray D'Arcy show.

https://video-ams3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t42.1790-
2/18613384_658442377686708_9021380394938793984_n.mp4?
efg=eyJybHIiOjMwMCwicmxhIjoxMjY2LCJ2ZW5jb2RlX3RhZyI6InN2ZV
9zZCJ9&rl=300&vabr=122&oh=72925607b58be66e550f646bfe982
790&oe=5928C4B5

Man living in floating home

wins reprieve against council
Supreme Court cites lack of proof that the 100 tonne
vessel Portisham is in Fingal area
Shane Kennedy who lives on Portisham, a boat in Balbriggan Harbour in
north Dublin. Photo: Collins

Mary Carolan
Thu, May 25, 2017, 16:02
A man living on a 100 tonne former minesweeper vessel in
a Dublin harbour has won his Supreme Court appeal
aimed at preventing it being removed and scrapped.
The three judge Supreme Court stressed it was allowing
Shane Kennedys appeal only because Fingal County
Council had failed to establish the necessary technical
proof the Portisham vessel was located on the foreshore
within the Councils functional area.
Nothing in the judgment should be taken as establishing
that the vessels location, and use as a habitation, is lawful,
whether as a matter of planning law or any other basis, Mr
Justice Frank Clarke stressed.
Mr Kennedy, an electronics engingeer aged in his 50s, has
lived on the Portisham since buying it in Essex, England,
in 2007 after it was decommissioned by the Royal Navy in
1989.
He paid 34,000 for it and estimates he has spent
70,000 doing it up. He spent three years in Weymouth
and Pembroke before sailing to Ireland. He brought the
vessel into Balbriggan harbour in 2010 despite the Council
telling him it would not be permitted into any harbours in
the Councils area.
Mr Kennedy disputed the Councils claims the vessel was
unsafe and unseaworthy.
Refused offers
The Council offered Mr Kennedy alternative
accommodation and took legal action in 2012 after he
refused those offers. It had also received several
complaints about the vessel being in the harbour.
The core issue in the Councils case was whether the vessel
was unauthorised development within the meaning of the
Planning and Development Act 2000. The High Court
ruled it was and also said the vessel was unseaworthy,
unregistered and uninsured.
In a previous Supreme Court judgment of 2015 on Mr
Kennedys appeal against the High Court decision, Ms
Justice Mary Laffoy said the Council had failed to provide
the necessary proof Portisham was located on the
foreshore, the line of high water of medium tides, within
the Councils functional area.
While it was highly probable the vessel was moored on
the foreshore, the Council had to provide technical proof
of that before final orders could be made under Section
160 of the 2000 Act, she said. If the vessel is moored to
and floating over the foreshore, it required planning
permission which Mr Kennedy had neither sought nor
obtained, the judge noted.
The matter was adjoured for further submissions in
another hearing.
Second judgment
In a second judgment on Thursday, Mr Justice Frank
Clarke said the position had not changed and it was
surprising in the extreme the Council had not introduced
relevant certified ordnance survey maps as evidence of
boundaries.
While it might be possible to accept there was sufficient
evidence to establish the harbour pier is part of the
Councils functional area, Portisham is not on the pier
but is rather moored to the pier in a location which may,
or may not, be on the foreshore, he said.
There continues to a be a technical lack of proof that
Portisham, as a habitation, is within the functional area of
Fingal, due to a technical lack of proof as to the precise
location of the foreshore by reference to the positioning of
the vessel, he said.
In the circumstances, and because the Council had got an
opportunity to deal with the technical proof issue, the
court would allow the appeal.
Earlier, noting Mr Kennedys complaint the court had not
dealt with his claims of alleged breach of his rights to his
home, the judge said the sole basis for the Councils case
was the 2000 Act and it was the issue the court must
address.
If the court had found a breach of the Act, it would be clear
Mr Kennedy acted in flagrant breach of the planning
law, he said. The fact the vessel was his home would then
have to be taken into account but, of itself, could not allow
a court to overlook a flagrant breach of planning law.
https://www.irishtimes.com/news/crime-and-law/courts/high-
court/man-living-in-floating-home-wins-reprieve-against-council-
1.3096381?mode=amp
This is what happens when you start campaigning; our message that pay is linked to quality
is getting on the agenda.

But we need more than just words from government. The Minister for Finance needs to
provide funding and we need to build our union.

Like and share if you want decent pay.