McVerry: Govt move will lock people into homelessness
Housing campaigners will meet in Dublin today to discuss urgent action needed on homelessness.
There are now 100,000 families on the Local Authority waiting lists, while rents are increasing in Dublin at an average rate of nearly 10%.
The conference comes after the Department of Social Protection yesterday announced that they would not be increasing rent supplements.
Fr Peter McVerry, who works with homeless people, says this move shuts the door on the exit out of homelessness for people.
He said: "They are now going to be locked into homelessness for as far into the future as we can see, because the private rented sector was the only exit out of homelessness available to them.
"It is also going to increase the number of homeless people, because already they are being evicted from the private rented sector for not being able to pay the increased rents."
