Local election candidate says Government's housing targets are not working

BIRR Sinn Fein local election candidate Seán Maher has this week highlighted the "huge disparity" between the Government's targets and the needs of local people.

"The Government's targets to reduce the housing crisis have failed the people of Offaly," claimed Seán. “We have been canvassing residents over the last five years and the number of generations living under the one roof has increased dramatically. The consequences of the Minister's low housing targets is there for all to see. They are having very little impact on the overcrowded family home, who continue to carry the burden of meeting the housing needs in our communities."

The candidate argued that this bad state of affairs has been compounded "by the fact that the Minister's targets for social housing were not met during the last twelve month period”.

He said Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael have "created and owned this problem for far too long." He promised that under a Sinn Féin Government "we will prioritise housing for a major overhaul. Under a Sinn Féin Housing Minister (Eoin Ó Broin) the party will commit to ramping up the current supply of public housing by a third to twenty-one thousand."

Seán believes there's a need for Offaly County Council to review their housing strategy for the County. “I have visited numerous vacant houses on my campaign trail including Council housing stock. If we are to resolve the housing crisis in the county, Offaly County Council must play its part and take the initiative, because it is the body which is responsible for housing. If elected to Offaly County Council, Sinn Féin Councillors will seek to bring housing controls back to the municipal areas; we will fight for increased funding for works to be carried out on housing for people with specific needs. We will support an increase to the vacant housing tax to spur development in this sector. Over the coming year we have a new opportunity to change the direction of housing policy in this country, starting on June 7th."