Paul Hosford: Ireland’s homelessness crisis didn’t just grow — our reaction to it quietly changed

Homelessness in Ireland has quadrupled in a decade — but public outrage has quietly faded as the crisis drags on

Since 2015, homelessness in Ireland has not only increased in numbers, it has also been accompanied by a noticeable shift in public attitudes.

There was a time when homelessness, or even people living in emergency accommodation, shocked us as a nation. It wasn’t that long ago either.

In 2018, as the once-unthinkable Rubicon of 10,000 homeless was crossed, Sinn Féin housing spokesman Eoin Ó Broin said housing minister Eoghan Murphy should “do the decent thing and resign”.