Taoiseach blamed for housing ‘legal trap’

THE Taoiseach was yesterday accused of ignoring the plight of 5,000 homeless people who cannot get private rented accommodation because of new strict regulations.

Mr Ahern said in the Dail earlier this week he believed that rents had dropped in the private sector and the Government had introduced a number of measures to increase the affordability of houses.

But Threshold, the organisation that campaigns for the rights of tenants, accused Mr Ahern of ignoring thousands of single people and lone parents who are caught in a legal trap which prohibits them from securing basic accommodation.