Build public housing on public land
Local authorities and state agencies own a vast amount of land around the city. But Fine Gael want to hand it over to private developers who will charge high prices for homes. This should be resisted. Public land should be used to build social and affordable housing at cheaper rates.
Stop rising rents
Fine Gael have deliberately allowed rents to rise so that they now consume nearly half of many people’s weekly income. People Before Profit councillors will back up any tenant fighting evictions. We shall mount a city wide campaign for reductions in rents and for rent controls.
Vacant property and sites
Vacant sites worth more than €400 million have been identified at 114 locations across Dublin city and county – and this is an underestimate. People Before Profit would impose compulsory purchase orders on many of these vacant sites –and use it for public and affordable housing.
Give Council tenants their rights
Dublin City Council treats its tenants with contempt, failing to deal, for example, with dampness in flat complexes. We will establish an independent complaints agency to give tenants a right to appeal over the head of their landlords. We will increase the maintenance staff and produce a proper charter for tenants’ rights.
Stop gentrification
The south and north inner city areas are being saturated with apartments, hotels and student accommodation with little or no social and affordable homes. Local people are being driven out of the city for the sake of profit. Dublin’s inner city will be a dead zone except for tourism in the next decade. We will put a halt to this policy and re-generate inner city council property.
