‘Not right’ that social home delivery has not reduced homeless figures, says Harris

Taoiseach Simon Harris has said that “it is not right” that social housing delivery has not reduced the number of people who are homeless.

The Fine Gael leader defended the government’s record on housing and said he did not believe two schemes for first-time buyers were inflating house prices.

Mr Harris also said that he expected house prices to fall when around 50,000-60,000 homes a year are being built.

The latest CSO (Central Statistics Office) figures show that house prices increased by 10 per cent in the 12 months to September, up 10.8 per cent in Dublin and 9.4 per cent outside the capital.

On homelessness, the official Department of Housing figures show there were 14,760 people in emergency accommodation at the end of September, including 4,561 children – both record highs.

Asked on RTÉ Radio’s Morning Ireland about the steady increase in the number of homeless figures over the coalition’s term in office, Mr Harris said: “It is not right that we saw the…