Higgins hits out at Ireland’s housing 'disaster' in impassioned speech

The president said the housing situation in the country 'isn’t a crisis anymore, it’s a disaster'

President Michael D Higgins made an impassioned speech in Kildare where he said he often asks himself 'how republican is what we’ve created?' Picture: Colin Keegan/ Collins Dublin

President Michael D Higgins has expressed his anger at Ireland’s housing “disaster” on Tuesday, describing it as “our great, great, great failure”.

In remarks made during a visit to the addiction charity Tiglin’s facility at Jigginstown Manor in Kildare, the president made an impassioned speech where he said he often asks himself “how republican is what we’ve created?” and said it was “sometimes very much closer to the poor law system we thought we were departing”.