Congress, SIPTU & Focus Ireland Join Forces on Housing
10 Oct 2008
Congress General Secretary David Begg, SIPTU President Jack O'Connor and Focus Ireland CEO Joyce Loughnan have joined forces to call on Taoiseach Brian Cowen to increase housing in Budget 2009.
Speaking following a meeting at Liberty Hall, Mt. O'Connor, Ms. Loughnan and Mr. Begg called on the government to invest €4billion in the coming budget to build and acquire 18,000 homes in 2009. This would include 10,000 social homes, 6,000 affordable homes and 2,000 new rental accommodation homes.
Congress General Secretary David Begg said: "Over recent years, government has too often abdicated its responsibilities and sought refuge in the notion that 'the market will deliver.' We now know that to be a fallacy. Left to its own devices, what the market has ultimately delivered is financial chaos and a threatened economic meltdown.
"Housing is not a commodity and the provision of social and affordable housing is a responsibility of government. Despite repeated commitments, the required housing was not delivered during the boom. Arguably, this was partly due to abolition of Part V of the Development Act (2002) which allowed developers off the hook with the argument being made that the market would deliver the housing units required. It can't and it didn't.
"This government now has a unique opportunity to address the housing needs of thousands, boost economic growth and protect construction jobs in the construction industry. Such an initiative should be seen not as a cost, but as an investment in social infrastructure, in people and in social cohesion."
Speaking at the joint press conference, Focus Ireland's CEO Joyce Loughnan said: "Towards 2016 commits the government to provide 27,000 new social units and 17,000 affordable units by 2009. These figures combined represent an agreed social and affordable housing output target of 15,000 units per year from 2006 to 2009."
"On the basis of current DoEHLG Housing Statistics the government is significantly behind on all of these commitments. In addition to the strong social argument for meeting these targets, Focus Ireland believes there is also a very strong macro economic case for increasing investment on social and affordable housing in budget 2009," she said.
"A focused programme of new build and acquisition of social and affordable housing in the order of 18,000 units a year for a number of years would act to stabilise the economy in the short term and at the same time meet growing housing needs, particularly for people who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless. We believe that such action would be consistent with both An Taoiseach Brian Cowen's commitment that the most vulnerable would not bear the brunt of the recession and Minister Lenihan's commitment to prioritise those capital investments within the National Development Plan that would help stimulate economic growth announced in his statement on September 3rd."
Ms. Loughnan concluded that if the Government is able to provide the banks with a guarantee of at least €400 Billion surely the State can prioritise and spend €4 Billion in line with NDP commitments to help protect jobs, stimulate the economy and also provide homes for those most in need in our society."
SIPTU President Jack O'Connor said: "It is crucial that the Government takes steps in next week's Budget to radically increase the supply of social and affordable housing."
"The failure of successive governments to deliver on their housing commitments means that the housing needs of many have not been adequately addressed. The boom in the Irish economy was of little consolation to those on social housing waiting lists or people who are homeless. The need for action is now even all the greater now given the more difficult economic circumstances faced by many."
With regard to recent calls by the Construction Industry for increased social and affordable housing output, the SIPTU President noted that it was not a Pauline conversion on the road to Damascus, but a stark example of economic opportunism.
"The drastic downturn in all areas of Construction has dealt a devastating blow to over 30,000 workers and there is now an even stronger argument to be made for the increase in social housing output, to deploy the spare capacity of building skills to a sector most in need of it," he said.
However, Mr. O'Connor stressed: "Let us be clear, this cannot be a generous injection of good fortune to relieve the woes of property developers and the wider industry at this time. Such contracts have to be negotiated on terms that are sufficient to cover building costs and that respect the industrial pay rates and ensure fair and decent working conditions."
ends
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