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Minister must get to grips with the homeless problem says Cllr

September 11th, 2015 12:05 PM

By Southern Star Team

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FIANNA Fil general election candidate Cllr Margaret Murphy O'Mahony has said it is 'extremely unfair' of Environment Minister Alan Kelly to claim local authorities are not doing enough to tackle housing and homelessness.

FIANNA Fáil general election candidate Cllr Margaret Murphy O’Mahony has said it is ‘extremely unfair’ of Environment Minister Alan Kelly to claim local authorities are not doing enough to tackle housing and homelessness.

She said she was ‘extremely surprised’ to hear the Minister calling for more co-operation from local authorities. ‘I know for a fact that Cork County Council has been doing everything it can to help ease the housing crisis,’ she said.

‘But the housing services are simply overwhelmed by demand.

‘Minister Kelly has watched this problem escalate from crisis to full blown emergency and I don’t think he’s in any position to belittle the efforts of local authorities.’

Cllr Murphy O’Mahony said that following weeks of silence from Minister Kelly, he had now emerged to assure the public that he’s doing a good job and that the homelessness emergency is a result of various other people and factors.

‘The reality is things are getting worse on the ground. I know the summer months can pass quickly, but I’m worried we will soon find ourselves with darker, colder evenings and we won’t have made the inroads we need to in the homelessness and housing situation,’ said the Bandon-based candidate.

‘I’m concerned that Minister Kelly simply doesn’t understand the extent of the homeless emergency and that while it might be very acute in the Dublin region, the need for safe, quality housing units has spread to all parts of the country, including West Cork,’ she added.

She said the Minister was refusing to take on board the suggestions raised by the stakeholders who are dealing with this every day.

‘The Minister needs to get to grips with the ongoing emergency. Fianna Fáil has published detailed proposals on the rental sector and a housing plan and I would encourage the Minister to take our policies on board so we can make real progress to ease pressure and anxiety on people in serious need of housing.’

FIANNA Fáil general election candidate Cllr Margaret Murphy O’Mahony has said it is ‘extremely unfair’ of Environment Minister Alan Kelly to claim local authorities are not doing enough to tackle housing and homelessness.

She said she was ‘extremely surprised’ to hear the Minister calling for more co-operation from local authorities. ‘I know for a fact that Cork County Council has been doing everything it can to help ease the housing crisis,’ she said.

‘But the housing services are simply overwhelmed by demand.

‘Minister Kelly has watched this problem escalate from crisis to full blown emergency and I don’t think he’s in any position to belittle the efforts of local authorities.’

Cllr Murphy O’Mahony said that following weeks of silence from Minister Kelly, he had now emerged to assure the public that he’s doing a good job and that the homelessness emergency is a result of various other people and factors.

‘The reality is things are getting worse on the ground. I know the summer months can pass quickly, but I’m worried we will soon find ourselves with darker, colder evenings and we won’t have made the inroads we need to in the homelessness and housing situation,’ said the Bandon-based candidate.

‘I’m concerned that Minister Kelly simply doesn’t understand the extent of the homeless emergency and that while it might be very acute in the Dublin region, the need for safe, quality housing units has spread to all parts of the country, including West Cork,’ she added.

She said the Minister was refusing to take on board the suggestions raised by the stakeholders who are dealing with this every day.

‘The Minister needs to get to grips with the ongoing emergency. Fianna Fáil has published detailed proposals on the rental sector and a housing plan and I would encourage the Minister to take our policies on board so we can make real progress to ease pressure and anxiety on people in serious need of housing.’

FIANNA Fáil general election candidate Cllr Margaret Murphy O’Mahony has said it is ‘extremely unfair’ of Environment Minister Alan Kelly to claim local authorities are not doing enough to tackle housing and homelessness.

She said she was ‘extremely surprised’ to hear the Minister calling for more co-operation from local authorities. ‘I know for a fact that Cork County Council has been doing everything it can to help ease the housing crisis,’ she said.

‘But the housing services are simply overwhelmed by demand.

‘Minister Kelly has watched this problem escalate from crisis to full blown emergency and I don’t think he’s in any position to belittle the efforts of local authorities.’

Cllr Murphy O’Mahony said that following weeks of silence from Minister Kelly, he had now emerged to assure the public that he’s doing a good job and that the homelessness emergency is a result of various other people and factors.

‘The reality is things are getting worse on the ground. I know the summer months can pass quickly, but I’m worried we will soon find ourselves with darker, colder evenings and we won’t have made the inroads we need to in the homelessness and housing situation,’ said the Bandon-based candidate.

‘I’m concerned that Minister Kelly simply doesn’t understand the extent of the homeless emergency and that while it might be very acute in the Dublin region, the need for safe, quality housing units has spread to all parts of the country, including West Cork,’ she added.

She said the Minister was refusing to take on board the suggestions raised by the stakeholders who are dealing with this every day.

‘The Minister needs to get to grips with the ongoing emergency. Fianna Fáil has published detailed proposals on the rental sector and a housing plan and I would encourage the Minister to take our policies on board so we can make real progress to ease pressure and anxiety on people in serious need of housing.’

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