Housing Minister under pressure as more than 8,000 homeless

The Government has come under renewed pressure to bring in radical measures to tackle the housing crisis after the number of homeless burst past the 8,000 mark in July.

The latest figures show 8,160 homeless people in the State in July, including 2,973 children. A total of 1,429 families were homeless.

The figures show a 26% increase in the number of homeless families in a year, a rise of 27% in homeless children in the same period and a 296% increase in the number of homeless children in just three years.