Verona Murphy (Wexford, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Five minutes each. I thank Sinn Féin for bringing the motion which again allows an opportunity to discuss some of the issues of housing and renters. At the outset, I want to acknowledge that there are some rogue landlords - some rogue landlords - who will do everything possible to get as much money from their property and who will use sometimes illegal and immoral methods to do so. I do not think the existence of rogue landlords is in any dispute but, equally, I do not believe all landlords are rogues.

We do not have enough houses of the type that people want to buy or rent. Whether for an individual, a couple, a family, or a student, there is a shortage. I hate to sound like a broken record, but I do not think it can be repeated enough: supply and demand dictates the price of everything. When barriers are placed in the way of supply, a product becomes scarcer. The scarcer something becomes, the more expensive it becomes. That is what is happening. Rents will continue to rise until we have a better housing supply. Part of the reason we have a lack of housing supply is because we have poor planning policy. Senior civil servants are contacting county managers across the country, telling them to take command of their county councillors in order to push through poorly thought-out and unlawful planning policy, which places barriers in the way of housing supply. It should be the other way around. It is time for the elected representatives and county councils to take charge of this situation. I mentioned previously in this House that continuing professional development, CPD, training needed to be rolled out for our directors of services in planning departments of councils. As much as I often disagree with the Office of the Planning Regulator, we are in agreement on this matter.

Furthermore, people are forced into taking judicial review proceedings, because unlawful planning policy is being implemented. Rather than ridiculing and holding to account those who are making and implementing unlawful planning policy, the powers that be are conspiring against the victims of such unlawful policies. Successive Governments have been placing barrier after barrier in the way of a person who wants to build a house, or multiple houses. Every time a new regulation is passed that makes the building of a house more difficult or onerous, it has two simple consequences. It either means the house will not be built at all or that the cost of the house will increase. I suggest that a good place to start would be for political parties to stop voting against housing developments for spurious reasons, particularly in our large cities. Perhaps then we would not have such a shortage of supply.

There was a battle recently with regard to the Wexford county development plan, where the Office of the Planning Regulator wanted to plan only to allow developments of at least 35 dwellings per ha. That figure is unrealistic for rural towns and it would act as a major barrier to development. Importantly, nowhere in the guidelines is there a minimum density. Thankfully, a strong campaign by seven of the eight independent councillors in Wexford County Council set down an amendment that has been accepted by all councillors and will go out for public consultation in the next month, seeing a reduced and acceptable density applied to a rural county such as Wexford.

Getting the reading of the motion right will rest with the director of services and chief planners. The independent councillors have performed for their constituents at this stage so we will have to wait for a week or two. Further to that, there was a recent meeting of Wexford County Council which I attended. Under Covid regulations, the meeting was limited to one hour and 55 minutes. Some 20 minutes of that meeting were given to ridiculing my contributions here in the Dáil because I dared to tell the truth and speak up about the implementation of unlawful planning policies.

We can have all of the motions we like on rent prices, purchase prices or affordable housing but we will continue to have a supply crisis until such a time as the Government corrects its position and the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, introduces clear, precise guidelines. That is exactly what the Minister needs to do to remove barriers. He needs to provide a policy that can be implemented and stop the sidewinding conversations that are taking place with senior civil servants and county managers.

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