Protest outside the Dáil over Ireland's housing crisis
The Irish Congress of Trade Unions organised the "Raise the Roof" protest to coincide with a parliamentary debate on the issue.
The union labelled the crisis "the greatest political failure of our time".
Ethel Buckley, deputy general secretary of SIPTU, stated: 'Workers are being priced out of home ownership and can only access housing by taking on unsustainable financial burdens.'
She went on to add: 'This has serious consequences, not just on a personal level, but across society. We're seeing vital jobs go unfilled and more young people emigrating.'
'What's urgently needed is a complete overhaul and long-term strategy to provide secure, affordable housing.'
Ireland's housing crisis has forced the government to navigate the wide gap in priorities between renters, landlords and property developers.
Homeownership is simply out of reach for many young people due to high demand and low supply.
According to recent data from property site Daft, average monthly rent has now surpassed €2,000 nationwide.
In response, the government has tried to introduce policies that both limit rent hikes and encourage construction by developers and investors.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin has stated that the government aims to considerably boost construction to meet national demand.
However, Sinn Féin has repeatedly criticised the government for not taking enough action to resolve the crisis.
The opposition described the situation as a severe emergency prior to the protest.
Eoin Ó Broin TD, Sinn Féin's housing spokesperson, said: 'We're calling for measures that genuinely protect renters, not the weakening of rent pressure zones that we've seen so far, but a total freeze on rent increases and concrete support to bring costs down.'
Rent Pressure Zones (RPZs) are areas where rent increases are legally limited to shield tenants from sharp price hikes.
The Raise the Roof campaign has widespread public support, but it remains uncertain whether this will alleviate Ireland's housing woes any time soon.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Times
7 hours ago
- Irish Times
Ireland fined €1.54m by ECJ for delay in writing Work-Life Balance directive into Irish law
The European Union's highest court has fined Ireland €1.54 million for delays in fully transposing the EU's 2019 directive on Work-Life Balance for Parents and Carers. The directive was due to have been fully transposed by the middle of 2022 but the legislation required to complete the process was not enacted until last year. The fine imposed by the Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ) is the fourth imposed on Ireland since 2020 for failing to transpose a directive in the anticipated timeframe following similar issues with regard to recent directives on anti-money laundering measures, audio visual services and electronic communications. The total fines imposed during the period now comes to just over €13 million. READ MORE The Work-Life Balance directive was intended to extend a number of entitlements to carers and parents with regard to time off work to allow them meet caring or support obligations, mainly to family members. Laura Bambrick, head of social policy and employment at the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, said part of the problem in this instance was that the government sought to go beyond what was required of it in its legislation and this, combined with complications associated with the pandemic, helped to prolong the process. 'The directive had a number of elements to it,' she says. 'It introduced paternity leave, paid parents' leave, it gave all workers the right of five days unpaid care leave for serious medical reasons, if a close relative or friend fell ill. It also allowed parents and carers to request flexible working and it was those last two that were late being transposed. 'Ireland has tended to be bad at transposing,' she continued. 'Being late, blocking, diluting the transposition. In this case, though, the period for transposition largely coincided with Covid and Ireland was one of the dozen countries given warnings about late transposition. 'What was specific to Ireland was that our Work Life Balance Bill became a miscellaneous piece of legislation, a lot of other bits including improvements to breastfeeding breaks, the introduction of domestic violence leave and the right to request remote working for all workers were all added.' In a statement, the Department for Children, Disability and Equality said it takes its responsibilities seriously regarding transposition of EU directives but that 'there were particular circumstances which delayed transposition of this directive, leading ultimately to today's penalty' It said many of the provisions required by the directive had been introduced before this deadline. Among other factors, it pointed to the pandemic as having contributed to delays and said the decision to attempt to deal with the issue of remote working had added to the time required to pass the required legislation. 'Ireland has made progress on reducing delays in transposing EU directives and is currently ranked second best overall in the EU, alongside Finland, in terms of timely transposition of EU Single Market Directives,' it said.
Agriland
a day ago
- Agriland
Government Needs to Invest in Irish Wool Industry Td
The government has been urged to invest in the Irish wool industry, particularly scouring and processing. Sinn Féin spokesperson on agriculture, Martin Kenny has said that sheep farmers are busy at present shearing, which needs to be done for the welfare of the sheep. Despite wool being a natural product that has many uses such as clothing, insulation and fertiliser, the price farmers are currently receiving is at "rock bottom", he said. "It costs more for the farmer to shear the ewe than they get for the fleece. There are many farmers with sheds full of wool for three and four years that they are unable to get sold," the deputy said. "I am told that some are having to pay to get rid of it." He said the development of a wool industry in Ireland needs to be state-led, "as we cannot wait for private industry to establish it". "The government needs to invest in the establishment of a large-scale wool scouring and processing plant," the deputy said. 'There is an industry for wool products in the country and there is a market for Irish wool products. "However, there are many wool garments sold in Ireland that are made from imported wool such as Merino wool.'Some Irish wool may not be suitable for clothing, but it still has a use in textiles such as carpets and rugs and for insulation." There is an opportunity for an Irish wool industry that would provide another source of income to farmers and create more jobs in wool processing, the deputy added, and government "needs to step up to the plate here and invest". The programme for government committed to examining the feasibility of a wool scouring plant in Ireland. According to Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon, two research projects are currently underway to assess sustainable approaches to wool scouring in Ireland. "In 2024, my department announced funding of €574,683 for the Spring Wool research project," the minister said in response to a recent parliamentary question. "Among other things, this project is examining the feasibility of a mobile wool scouring unit that is compliant with wastewater regulations. "The treatment of wastewater from the scouring process is a major obstacle to the growth of the wool sector. The work is being coordinated by the Munster Technological University." The second research project, Regenerative Value Systems for Irish Grown Wool in Ireland, is funded by the Environmental Protection Agency. "This project is examining the economics of wool production within a circular bioeconomy," the minister explained. "Key objectives are to investigate various business models for scalable scouring and to assess the potential for local scouring across the island of Ireland." He said his department will examine the outcome of both research projects, "which will help inform government of the feasibility of establishing a scouring plant in Ireland".
Agriland
a day ago
- Agriland
Govt to Invest E3 5 Billion Into Irelands Electricity Infrastructure
The government has announced a landmark €3.5 billion investment in Ireland's electricity grid infrastructure, as part of the National Development Plan. The Taoiseach, Micheál Martin published the plan yesterday (July 22), which will see a total investment of €275.4 billion from 2026 to 2035. As part of the investment, €1.5 billion will be allocated to ESB Networks, and €2 billion will be allocated to EirGrid. This will enable both companies to significantly increase capital investment to expand Ireland's onshore and offshore electricity transmission, and distribution network infrastructure. According to the Department of Climate, Energy and the Environment the enhanced grid will be crucial to deliver on key commitments in the programme for government, including achieving 80% renewable electricity by 2030. This requires building 9GW of onshore wind, 8GW of solar power, and 5GW of offshore wind in construction by 2030 – targets that are only possible with a world-class electricity network. The department claims that the scale of investment is reflective of expenditure required in most European countries as they seek to increase connections of renewable energy, interconnect with neighbouring countries, and provide reliable networks for the increased electrification of the energy system. The Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment, Darragh O'Brien said: "This €3.5 billion investment is about building the energy infrastructure that Ireland needs for the future. "It's about ensuring every home and business has a reliable and secure source of electricity, creating thousands of jobs, and making Ireland a more attractive place for international companies to invest and grow." "A modern, resilient electricity grid is the backbone of everything we want to achieve — from powering the 300,000 new homes we've committed to build by 2030, to attracting the foreign investment that creates jobs in communities across Ireland," Minister O'Brien added. Meanwhile, the Minister of State with responsibility for the Marine, Timmy Dooley believes that Ireland's offshore energy potential is "enormous". "Our Atlantic coastline offers some of the best offshore wind resources in the world, and with the right infrastructure, we can transform Ireland from an energy importer to an energy exporter," he said.
