A series of articles that have been carried in the mainstream media recently have exposed the human face of the growing housing crisis in Dublin and other urban centres across the state.
Despite more than 289,000 vacant dwellings in Census 2011, there is the most serious housing crisis seen in this country for decades. Few of these vacant properties are being turned over to the state. Many are being deliberately held onto by developers,
Labour and Fine Gael housing policy is to enrich private landlords and boost their profits by not providing social housing and push more people into rent supplement arrangements. Figures reveal that the government gave €400 million to private landlords in 2012. The