I thank my colleague, Teachta Ó Broin, for bringing forward the motion. The Government's housing record is not just a failure; it is a disgrace. In County Clare alone, 125 notices of termination were received by the RTB in quarter 1 of 2026, compared with 79 in the same period last year. That number is not just a statistic. These are 125 people and families having their lives turned upside down – families living in fear, stress and uncertainty about where they will sleep next week or next month. At the very same time, the average rent in County Clare has risen to €1,249 per month. That is up from €1,089 this time last year. That is a staggering 14% increase on top of soaring energy bills, childcare costs and rising costs of living. Many renters are paying far more than the average. In our constituency offices we are meeting young couples who are both working full-time but are forced to move back in with their parents because they simply cannot afford these sky-high rents. There are retired people couch surfing. We are even dealing with a couple living in a car who are expecting a baby any day now. This is the brutal reality of this Government's housing policy. Instead of standing up for ordinary workers, families, renters and students, this Government continues to side with institutional investors and big, corporate landlords. It is willingly pursuing policies which drive up rents and facilitate evictions, throwing renters to the wolves while protecting the profits of vulture funds. The Government should be standing up for these renters, banning rent increases and no-fault evictions, and closing loopholes which allow excessive service charges to rise out of control and out of affordability. It needs to oppose rent increases for council tenants, for those in receipt of housing assistance payment, HAP, and the rental accommodation scheme, RAS, and for cost-rental tenants. People cannot take any more; they need a Government that is on their side. They have become numb to the fact that we have more than 5,570 children who are homeless. How can the Government stand over that? How can it say it is doing everything when the numbers on the homeless lists are just going up and up? The Government has failed renters and communities like those in County Clare are paying the price.

Sentiment score: -0.09