Sr Stanislaus Kennedy: We should hold referendum on the right to a home

The need for a coherent national housing policy has never been greater as we attempt to grapple with the legacy of failure from the past three decades. During that period of greed and speculation homes came to be viewed as an economic driver rather than a basic right for our people.

The legacy of such failed policies is damning. It has left us with housing lists which are three times longer than 1993, with 90,000 families now seeking a home and 1,000 children without a roof over their head.

To be fair the Government has been trying to get to grips with the crisis. However, there are serious gaps in its approach, with unfulfilled commitments and building programmes that are taking too long to become reality. There is little comfort to those forced to live in hotel rooms with no cooking or play facilities, or, even worse, in cars or on the streets.

As we prepare to enter a period of commemoration, culminating with the centenary of our independence, it is time for us to reassess our priorities.

What is needed is the introduction of a housing policy which will address three key areas: honour the commitment to introduce rent certainty, speed up the delivery of social housing and enshrine the provision of a home as a basic right in our Constitution.

Private rented accommodation has a major role to play in ensuring we have enough homes for our people and currently 20 per cent of us rent flats, apartments and houses – yet it is a sector where the Government has no strategy.

Lack of security and rent certainty has left many families facing spiralling rents in a market which is out of control. These increases, coupled with several cuts to the rent supplement, have placed families in catastrophic situations.

The Government gave a commitment to introduce rent certainty earlier this year – nothing has happened yet prices have continued to rise. Minister for the Environment Alan Kelly needs to return to his commitment and quickly deliver security for private tenants and landlords.

Proposals to provide 35,000 social housing units announced last year are welcome as an initiative which will deliver in the long term but which offers little comfort to those who need a home now.

Many of the promised units will not become available until the latter end of the plan in 2020.

Glaring gap

The failure to plan for the short-term needs of families and individuals is a glaring gap in the Government’s approach which must be addressed.

After a decade of little or no building activity our councils need to increase their ability to deliver projects quickly. Changes in funding, planning and building techniques need to be embraced if they can also provide good-quality housing in sustainable communities.

The practice of land hoarding needs to be ended, while every effort should be made to keep those who have homes from losing them and adding to the pressure on waiting lists.

Although a housing strategy must be practical in meeting the needs of our people it must also involve a fundamental change from the failed policies of the past 30 years. As a country we must stop viewing homes as drivers of economic activity. The greed and speculation of the past created the boom and bust economics which have caused so much suffering and misery in our communities.

As far back as 1966 the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights placed housing along with food and clothing as the cornerstone of an adequate standard of living.

It was a position echoed much closer to home only last year when the constitutional convention recommended that the right to a home should be included in the Constitution.

Humanity

I believe that should be put before the people in a referendum, and I have little doubt that the result will be one based on humanity and generosity.

There will be a lot of stocktaking in the run-up to Easter 2016, and a lot discussed about where we stand as a nation and our values.

It is time for us to be honest with ourselves. During the discussions and soul-searching ahead it is important to acknowledge that there is a lot we should be ashamed of.

We have allowed our people’s most basic requirement – a place to call home, a place where they can live their lives and bring up their children in security, privacy and safety – to become a debased currency.

Market forces and speculation were placed first and foremost ahead of the needs of families.

But we must reflect too that it was not always that way. Not too long ago as a nation much poorer than today we ensured that the provision of affordable homes was one of the mainstays of our country.

It is time now to readjust our priorities. By making and honouring commitments and by delivering constitutional change we can ensure that in our communities people can be assured of a place to call home.

Sr Stanislaus Kennedy is a social campaigner and founder of Focus Ireland. She is addressing the MacGill Summer School today on homelessness