Councillor Gino Kenny has stated that society and our immediate community is facing a housing crisis that is undermining social cohesion.

“Since I became a Councillor in 2009 the overriding issue that I deal with on a day to day basis is housing and the shortage of it. The lack of good and affordable social housing is and will be the social narrative of our generation. The average waiting time to be socially housed is anything from six to nine years and this will only increase because of the lack of social housing. When any council house comes available in the Clondalkin area there are literally hundreds of people making enquiries about its availability. It’s a case where demand far outreaches supply”

“Since the new rent thresholds that were introduced last year people who receive rent allowance are finding it extremely difficult to make ends meet. What people are finding is rents are actually going up rather than down. In some parts of Dublin Mid West rents have gone back to pre bust levels. The other phenomenon people are experiencing is landlords and agencies that will not except rent allowance. If the landlord excepts rent allowance the house is gone in a matter of hours. I know of one incident were the landlord was bidding for the highest bidder with other proposed tenants’ so he could maximise his monthly rent”

“The crisis of housing is a political decision taken by this government. Every year the government hand out over 400 Million a year to private landlords in rent subsidy. This is the quasi privatisation of social housing leased out to private landlords to address the issue of social housing. Most people who are on the housing list wish to be socially housed rather than a five or ten year contract with a private rented scheme associated to a local authority. Until we see a serious social housing building programme we will be witnessing the undermining of social cohesion in our communities”