Friday, May 04, 2012

Sr Stan Says Ireland is Back to Poor Law Times

One of the country's leading social justice advocates has said that Ireland is witnessing a return to Poor Law times where a person must be completely destitute before they get any help from the State.

Speaking at the launch of Focus Ireland's annual report, the charity's founder Sr Stanislaus Kennedy said, “People who become homeless are expected to live in conditions unacceptable for others in society.” 

“There is a rising number of people at risk of losing their homes and there will be a deepening homeless crisis in the coming years unless decisive action is urgently taken. Cuts to rent supplement are causing some people to become homeless and blocking a route out of homelessness for others.”

Speaking about how the rent supplement system operates in Ireland, she said, “The homeless problem has been made worse by the rent supplement system which sees people actually being forced into homeless before they can gain access to this payment, which is meant to be a key safety net. Our staff see people deteriorate before their eyes each week they are homeless. We support them as best we can but being homeless still causes terrible damage to families and single people.”

Her message was echoed by the CEO of Focus Ireland Joyce Loughnan, who said that the government has to act to end the crisis. 

She said that a target had been set by the Dublin Homeless Region Executive of 900 housing units to be provided in Dublin for this year.  

However, she pointed out that there needs to be a target of another 700 units set for the rest of the country if we are to achieve the aim of ending long-term homelessness by the end of 2013. 

She added, “It is vital for the government to ensure that NAMA delivers a real social dividend and plays a key role in solving homelessness. There is widespread support for this approach, as a survey carried out for Focus Ireland found 85% of the public agrees that empty houses under Nama should be made available for use, at a reasonable rent, to individuals and families who are homeless.”

The charity called on the government to set a national target of 1,600 units to be provided in both 2012 and 2013, specifically for people who are homeless.  

In 2011, the charity also saw a rise of 15% in the number of people using its services, meaning that last year 7,459 people benefited from the organisation’s work.

Speaking at the launch, the Minister of State for Housing and Planning Jan O'Sullivan TD said, “The Programme for Government commits the Government to ending long-term homelessness and I see this as one of my main priorities as Minister for Housing and Planning. To achieve this goal the government is committed to reviewing the homeless strategy and adopting a housing led approach to homelessness. Work is now almost complete on updating the strategy and the review will take account of demands on existing housing, access how best to continue to providing services and seek to ensure more effective prevention strategies.”