10. Deputy Rory Hearne asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage his plans to hold a referendum and legislate for a constitutional right to housing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53899/25]

Sentiment score: 0.01

Will the Minister update us on the plans to deliver the social housing projects via public-private partnerships? I understand that there are legal issues in relation to those. Is there any progress on that, particularly around the projects in Ballymun and Whitehall in my own constituency and elsewhere in Dublin? What is the status of those social housing projects? When will they be delivered? The Minister might update us on those. What are the future plans for public-private partnerships?

Sentiment score: 0.08

There may have been a different notification in relation to the question. Apologies. I will ask that question briefly.

Sentiment score: 0.00

Perfect.

Sentiment score: 0.57

There was a very clear commitment in the 2020 Fianna Fáil manifesto in relation to holding a referendum on housing. I cannot remember whether it was in Fine Gael’s manifesto as well, but I think there was a commitment around it in the 2020 programme for Government. There was also a Seanad motion passed calling for a referendum on the right to housing and a constitutional change that would insert a very clear right to housing. That was proposed by a Fianna Fáil Senator and backed by Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael Senators. What has changed? Why has this new Government run away from the right to housing? The Minister's response was not accurate as regards the Housing Commission. The majority recommendation from the commission was to insert a right to housing in the Constitution. There was opposition but that was a minority. The majority of the Housing Commission recommended the insertion of a right to housing in the Constitution, so why is the Government not progressing that?

Sentiment score: 0.22

It is very disappointing to hear that. We are in a housing crisis and housing emergency now for well over a decade. One could argue in some respects that we have been in a housing crisis since the 1990s. House prices have been on the rise, then we had the crash, and now we are back into rising and unsustainable house prices. There is still something fundamentally wrong with our housing system, our housing market, the way we treat housing and the way we understand housing. Other countries, for example, Spain, have a right to housing in their constitutions. Their starting point in the creation of housing policy and the treatment of housing is that it is a human right. This matters because there is confusion; is it an investment commodity, is it something about a public good, or is it social need? The majority recommendation of the Housing Commission was very clear that there should be a referendum and the right to housing should be inserted into the Constitution, which would then guide all policy decisions and all our interactions around housing from a Government perspective. I am disappointed to hear it is not a priority for the Minister.

Sentiment score: -0.19