Dublin City Council supports Sinn Féin motion demanding Minister for Housing reinstates homeless prevention scheme

Dublin City Council tonight supported a Sinn Féin motion demanding the Minister for Housing reinstates the homeless prevention support, the Tenant In Situ Scheme.

Speaking tonight, Cllr. Daithí Doolan, Sinn Féin Group Leader on Dublin City Council, said:

“Tonight, Dublin City Council spoke in a loud, clear and united voice. We are demanding that the Minister for Housing James Browne reinstates the Tenant In Situ Scheme in full.

“This scheme was an effective homeless prevention tool.  Last year alone, it saved 350 households from homelessness in Dublin.

“The minister’s response was to strangle it and make it unworkable. In a callous move he has slashed the funding by €22m and imposed criteria that will make hundreds of people homeless this year.

“His mean-hearted cuts will ensure that Dublin City Council runs out of money and will no longer be in a position to buy properties under the scheme. This is unacceptable and we will not accept it.

“The support tonight was from all parties, including from government party councillors. This is hugely significant. 

“Minister Browne needs to wake up to the homeless crisis and work with us and not against us. He must immediately reinstate the Tenant In Situ Scheme.”

Text of Emergency Motion:

Dublin City Council notes that the Tenant In Situ Scheme was an essential tool in preventing homelessness. 

It allowed local authorities to buy properties from landlords who otherwise would have carried out no-fault evictions. 

Last year, hundreds of families in Dublin were prevented from becoming homeless because of this effective scheme.

Dublin City Council is deeply concerned that the Minister for Housing James Browne has cut funding to this scheme and introduced criteria that will result in more people becoming homeless.

Dublin City Council urges the Minister for Housing to immediately reverse his decision and to reinstate the scheme in full.