Still a lot of gaps – Browne

WEXFORD Fianna Fail TD James Browne gave the housing action plan a ‘qualified’ welcome.

‘ The reason I would qualify it is we’ve seen an awful lot of plans in the past that didn’t amount to anything,’ he said.

Deputy Browne said the previous government rolled out a new plan every six months and most of them came to nothing.

‘In fairness this plan seems to have a bit more meat on the bones in that it has specific targets but there are a lot of gaps it doesn’t address.’

‘It doesn’t give fixture of tenure to tenants who don’t have security in the long-term.’

‘It doesn’t address student accommodation which is a major issue for families in terms of availability and cost. I have parents coming to me all the time who are under severe pressure not only to afford accommodation but to find somewhere for their college-going children to live. It’s the single biggest expense of third level education for them,’

‘ The key to this plan will be delivery. We need to see bricks and mortar and that needs to happen soon.’

Deputy Browne said Fianna Fail has proposed the establishment of a Housing Agency with concrete powers to bring the work of the Department, local authorities and the construction industry together to make sure targets are met and the action plan is delivered.