Council house empty for 14 years ‘a scandal’

A COUNCIL house in Cork aity has been left empty for at least 14 years despite more than 6,491 individuals and families in the city on a waiting list for a social home.

It is one of 5,601 council houses around the country lying empty as waiting lists almost doubled in the past five years to 80,000.

The Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government said the average time for a local authority house to remain vacant is around 22 weeks.