The housing crisis is now a humanitarian crisis, says Cllr

  The housing crisis in North Tipperary has become so bad, said a local councillor this week, that an emergency meeting needs to be held in order to discuss it.
  Cllr Seamus Morris pointed out that last year he looked for an emergency housing meeting to address the crisis. That meeting never took place and now, he claims, the situation has deteriorated so much that it has become a "humanitarian crisis".
  "Since last year," he remarked, "our ability to provide housing has lessened, with landlords selling houses at such a rate that we are not able to replace them."
  He said rents in the town of Nenagh have risen by 16.5%. The Council's recent analysis of household affordability found that 21.2% of households in Tipperary are experiencing affordability issues to keep the roof over their heads. 
  Cllr Morris pointed out that the Council's response to him last year when he looked for the emergency meeting was "heavily weighted towards the provision of affordable homes for purchase and rent. Despite this, the Government has decided that Tipperary should be left out of their affordable housing plans in the Housing plan up to 2026."
  He pointed out that the Council's HAP (Housing Assistance Payment) tenants are having to dig deeper and deeper to make up the increasing rents each month and it is not sustainable. "Add to this," he continued, "the reckless decision of our Government to take tens of thousands of Ukrainian refugees when we hadn't the ability to house them. I am again asking for an emergency housing meeting to include our TDs and Senator."