Offaly Councillors clash over housing crisis and homelessness

Councillors clashed over the Housing Crisis during the May meeting of Offaly County Council held in Birr Library.

Cllr Aoife Masterson praised the Council housing staff, pointing out that the work they do is hard and stressful.

“I know it can be incredibly difficult working in the Council's housing section and it is amazing to me that you are not suffering from PTSD.”

Cllr Masterson said the Housing Crisis and Homelessness issue is “absolutely atrocious. But your hands are tied in the housing section. The Council is not getting sufficient funding to properly tackle the crisis.”

She praised the housing staff for drawing up a Homelessness Action Plan “in impossible circumstances.”

She pointed out that every day stressed people are coming into her office “looking for a roof over their heads, looking for a place to sleep. It is criminal that they are in this situation.”

She added that there are many who are not registered as homeless but who are still living with their parents, or sleeping in sheds or on couches.

The councillor added that many people who are enduring homelessness have physical afflictions which make the experience even harder.

“The amount of funding for the Housing Assistance Payment has also been reduced, which makes things more difficult. HAP is problematic because the demand for rental properties in certain areas increases due to HAP which means that landlords can raise their rents, leading to higher average rental costs. HAP is no substitute for Council social housing, which is what we should be focussing strongly on. We should stand up to the government and say the people of Offaly have had enough, but we are not doing this.”

Cllr Masterson added that the person in the Council who works as the HAP finder has a very difficult job.

“During Covid we had the no fault eviction ban and it was the only time when we saw a reduction in the homeless figures. But now, the way things are going, I can only see the figures going up.”

The Councillor said the prospect of the never-ending housing crisis makes her very angry.

“We are clapping ourselves on the back today for producing this Homelessness Action Plan but I don't know how we can be so smug. I don't know how we can look our constituents in the eye. We should be screaming every day from the rooftops about this problem. We are like Nero fiddling why Rome burns. It is a disgrace. I don't have any faith in this Homeless Plan. I can't support it. It is not because of a lack of work by the Council staff. It is because our hands are tied; the system is restricting us in what we can do.”

Cllr John Leahy said he disagreed with Cllr Masterson, pointing out that she was looking at the glass half empty.

“This Midland Regional Homelessness Action Plan 2025 to 2029 is an excellent plan and I strongly support it. We should be very proud that the number of homeless in Offaly is, relatively speaking, so low. It's only 0.08%. We are obviously doing something right if it's so low. I think we should be very proud of where things stand and we should be proud of this Action Plan. “I think every possible avenue to keep people in their homes is being thoroughly explored.” He added that the three Safe Homes in the three Municipal Districts for victims of domestic violence are working very well and are an excellent addition to the fabric of people's lives in Offaly.

Several other Councillors spoke in support of the new Plan including Cllrs Seán O'Brien and Peter Ormond.

The meeting was told that Homeless Services include Clonamore Hotel (Cill Bhride) where 17 professionalyy supported beds are provided. The Peter McVerry Trust continues to support individuals allocated to Housing First units. As well as the HAP Place Finder, a Homeless Prevention and Support Officer is working on the problem.

The Social Housing Support Allocations are as follows: Social Housing Support List: 568. HAP Tenancies: 456.

In Laois, Offaly, Westmeath and Longford, in May 2024 there were 172 adults who were homeless and 51 children who were homeless.