Housing funds should be given to citizens

The Housing Finance Agency and the Department of the Environment are reported to be providing funding, our money, to voluntary housing body Túath to purchase 117 homes in Dublin for people on the social housing list.

Given the time that’s in it, is it appropriate to ask why such funds are not being made available to the citizen directly to provide housing for themselves or indeed to the local authorities thus ensuring that housing availability is fairly shared across the country and the ownership of these properties remain in the hands of those who provided the money for them.

A century after independence our political leaders seem determined to ensure that citizens from the lower end of the socio-economic ladder are forced to rely on charities to access the basics.

Do they fear that people might lose the run of themselves and think that citizenship of a free and independent republic might just entitle them to own the odd essential thing or two.

Jim O’Sullivan

Rathedmond

Sligo