Juking The Stats 2

In Blog, Politicsby Fedayn16 Comments

Paul Reynolds


Above: A photograph of some urban dereliction by Paul Reynolds.

Minister Jan O’Sullivan’ Housing Assistance Payment Bill will remove people receiving rent assistance from the housing waiting list.

SF TD Dessie Ellis outlined the implications of removing tens of thousands (many of whom have been on it for over a decade) from the housing list.

‘This means they will find it almost impossible to get a council house, to buy a home or ever be secure in their home.

This condemns tens of thousands to insecure housing and will cost hundreds of millions a year in private rent subsidy.’

The Bill, supported by Labour and Fine Gael gives a typically right-wing solution to a serious housing problem. There are over 100,000 people on the Housing Lists around the country now, approx 40,000 in Dublin, and rather than build a house or appropriate the rotting unfinished hulks of so-called ‘ghost’ houses or estates the government has decided, to borrow the term from The Wire, to ‘juke the stats’.

Those in Rent allowance receipt will be struck off the housing list and the taxpayer will shell out twice for the allowance and loss of income as it passes to private landlords.

Maybe it’s the heat but our cynicism is up to 11 at the moment and we’ve just heard that the government is pushing this through without debate tomorrow.

Democracy.

Comments

  1. The Ogre does what ogres can,
    Deeds quite impossible for Man,
    But one prize is beyond his reach:
    The Ogre cannot master speech.

    About a subjugated plain,
    Among it’s desperate and slain,
    The Ogre stalks with hands on hips,
    While drivel gushes from his lips. (Auden)

  2. As far as I am aware you go on the transfer list when you are on the HAP system. As it stands around 40% of units allocated by DCC go to people on the transfer list. I might be wrong but this is my reading of the legislation

  3. Appalling and unfortunately not shocking. The government continue to stoop to new lows

  4. It wouldn’t be a bad idea if rent supplement worked properly. (it doesn’t….)

  5. I had a joke to expain Irish politics, like England, but with two Tory parties. Think we can make that three.

  6. So …you can only be on the list if you are too rich to get rent supplement? Or maybe if you are too poor – as in living in a disused fast food container. But not if you are somewhere in the middle like 90 pc of people.

  7. release nama assets now – in every way possible, to help people. some of there holdings are now worth a fortune. oh shit, wait a minute – that might affect the housing/commercial rent sectors ”adversely”; it might be counterproductive. FUCK CAPITALISM .econolaw mindsets = budgets prioritised over society

  8. ah never mind I see yous already were on to that.

  9. Those houses in the picture are around the corner from me. I can’t comment on the video and article at present. It’s too depressing.

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