'Appalling', 'heartless', 'shameful': Taoiseach called on to reverse evictions ban decision
The leaders of the three Government parties and Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien decided late last night not to extend the ban on evictions.
The Taoiseach has been called on to reverse an "appalling", "heartless" and "shameful" decision not to extend the evictions ban.
Opposition TDs have rounded on Leo Varadkar in the Dáil after the Government this morning agreed to end the temporary moratorium on evictions from next month.
However, Mr Varadkar strongly defended the move, claiming it is the "right decision in the round" and is "in the public interest".
Housing Minister Darragh O'Brien confirmed the Government decision to end the emergency ban on Tuesday, saying that the move was a "responsible" one.
The Taoiseach said that a continuation of the ban "might have given us some respite for a short period ahead, but actually would have made things much worse in the medium to long term".
Mr Varadkar said the moratorium was not effective in reducing homelessness as the numbers in emergency accommodation have increased. He added that the measure was beginning to form a new form of homelessness as property owners living abroad could not return to their own homes and students could not move into apartments which their parents had bought.
He said leaving the ban in place would have reduced the availability of places to rent and would have driven up rent further.
"It would discourage new landlords from coming into the marker who we need," said Mr Varadkar, stating that 40,000 landlords have left the market in recent years.
"It was a finely balanced decision, there are pros and cons," Mr Varadkar said before adding that it was felt that it is now the "right" thing to do.
Sinn Féin housing spokesperson Eoin Ó Broin hit out at the Taoiseach for what he described as a "cold, blunt decision" to end the ban.
He said Ministers had made a "heartless, cruel and shameful decision" that will force more people into homelessness.
Mr Ó Broin accused Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and now the Green Party of abandoning renters.
"Together you have allowed rent to rise and keep rising," he said, asking Mr Varadkar to provide details of what the Government will do to prevent even more people becoming homeless when the eviction ban ends in April.
Social Democrats leader Holly Cairns said it was "unbearable" listening to the Taoiseach trying to "defend the indefensible" in the Dáil.
She said the Government has now" condemned potentially thousands of individuals and families to homelessness."
Highlighting the serious harm being done to children in emergency accommodation, she said: "Taoiseach you said you want to make Ireland the best country in the world to be a child. You made that commitment when you became Taoiseach barely two months ago. What do you say to those children who will become homeless because of your decision?"
Ms Cairns directly called on the Taoiseach to reverse the "appalling" decision.
Thomas Pringle said there are only 49 houses available in Donegal today and none of these are affordable to people on Housing Assistance Payments (HAP).
The Independent TD said the 3,500 children who are homeless around the country is a "shameful indictment" and said the Taoiseach should admit that his Government has "failed".
Mr Varadkar said Attorney General Rossa Fanning advised that it would be extremely difficult to justify a permanent extension of the eviction moratorium, but it would be possible to impose a temporary extension.
"Having considered it, the Government formed the view that it wasn't in the public interest in the round to extend the eviction moratorium," he told the Dáil.
Green Party TD Patrick Costello called for the publication of the legal advice provided to the Government on the evictions ban.
He told the Dáil: "There are plenty of learned barristers out there who say it's perfectly constitutional to continue the eviction ban.
"So, I'm calling on the Government to publish this advice and let's test it. Better yet, let's continue the eviction ban and test it in court."
However, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said the Cabinet made the decision based on "what we thought was the right thing to do as a Government. It wasn't because the AG told us that we could or couldn't make the decision".
Earlier, Green Party Dublin Central TD Neasa Hourigan condemned the actions of her party leader Eamon Ryan in agreeing to the evictions ban, saying he did not represent the values of the Green Party in doing so.
Speaking on RTÉ radio, Ms Hourigan said if the coalition leaders were lifting the evictions ban, there was nobody at Monday night’s meeting “to speak to Green Party values and Green Party policy”.
Ms Hourigan has only recently rejoined the party having served a suspension along with Mr Costello, and has struggled to reconcile a number of the decisions her party’s leadership has taken in Government.
Chief executive of Threshold John Mark McCafferty said he understood the decision was “a delicate balance” and a “difficult decision”. But he said the “ending of the eviction ban in March will mean increased homelessness in the short term”.
Speaking on Monday, Mr O’Brien said he was anxious to stem the flight of landlords from the sector, which is reducing supply and pushing up prices for rented accommodation.
He said the Government had strengthened tenants’ rights considerably in recent years but that “anything we do, will have to be carefully calibrated to make sure we’re not seeing a decrease in supply in that sector”.
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