Since I was first elected in 2014 to Fingal County Council housing has been my number one issues when dealing with people in Fingal. The housing crises is at an all-time high. The number of homeless people including whole families is at numbers that have never been seen before. There are also thousands of people particularly young people trapped paying sky-high rents while unable to save up for a deposit to buy their own home. And very high numbers are living at home with family, who are not even accounted for on the homeless lists.

Everyone should have the right to a secure and affordable home. A change of government is the only way this housing crisis will be resolved as the previous Government has shown they are unable to do this.

A Sinn Féin government would take a different approach to Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. We set out in our 2024 Alternative Budget that a Sinn Féin government would deliver greater investment, increase targets to match demand, cut out red tape which is resulting in delays of up to 2 years before a brick is laid, use new technology to build, speed up planning and introduce changes to tax code to incentivise building of affordable homes.

I am running in the Cabra/Glasnevin area this time around and if I am elected to Dublin City Council I along with my team of Sinn Féin councillors will work hard on the council to tackle the housing crisis too. We'd work to deliver affordable purchase homes through Local Councils and Approved Housing Bodies at prices people can genuinely afford. Local councils and Approved Housing Bodies will deliver the new affordable homes in Sinn Féin’s government plan, on public land.

One of my very first successes as an elected councillor was to get funding released from FCC to have windows and doors replaced that had been installed in a housing estate that was 40 years old at the time. If elected to DCC in June, I will bring this 10 years of work experience with me to deal with bad living conditions in both social and privately rented accommodation.

People should not have to live in damp, mouldy or unmaintained homes. We in Sinn Féin would continue to push to prioritise those homes in greatest need of repair and reduce waiting lists for basic maintenance. 

 I put forward several motions and questions over the last 10 years to bring back our bin services into public ownership and to have them back under the ownership and responsibility of our local Authorities. I believe by having them under our control that this will elevate a lot of the problems we have with illegal dumping and fly tipping. I, along with our Sinn Féin team will continue with this campaign as having our waste management in the hands of private companies is just not working.

There are far too many vacant and derelict properties in our capital city. Many of these homes are lying idle for years. Some are being left to rot, becoming derelict and a further blight on our communities. Sinn Féin would encourage local authorities to Compulsory Purchase, where practical, and return to use derelict properties alongside increased utilisation of the Buy and Renew scheme. We would also request monthly updates to increase the collection of the Derelict Sites Levy and to speed up the return of vacant social homes.

I was a member of the Community Policing Forum in my first term of being elected. I see the value of these forums and having the local Gardaí present at local community public meetings. Residents like to have the community Guards listen to the issues in their area and this helps to build relationships between them both. These meetings are vital. Sinn Féin have outlined our proposals to invest in the Gardaí, so we can have more Gardaí on our streets protecting communities. We would introduce a public transport policing unit to ensure people can feel safe while using public transport. We would get to grips with the recruitment and retention crisis in the Gardaí to end the huge numbers resigning.

Road safety and accessible transport are at the heart of ensuring people can travel to work, school etc safely and efficiently. In 2023 we saw the highest number of deaths on our roads in almost a decade. Dublin ranked worst, in public transport, of 30 European Cities in 2023. We need to change this. I was part of a group of councillors from around the country who brought forward the motion of Jake’s Law that was passed successfully in FCC and across the country. Jake’s Law was to reduce the speed limit to 20kph in housing estates after a young boy tragically died after being hit by a car while playing outside his home. The speed was reduced to 30kph.

I do recognise that many children cannot safely access school without relying on a lift from parents. In government we would increase funding to make getting to school safe. Ensuring more active travel, such as cycling and walking, will be a keyway to tackle the climate crisis. To ensure this is realistic, people must feel confident that they can do so safely. Also, quality public transport links, like the Metrolink are essential if we are to reduce transport emissions and meet our climate targets.

In my new area of Cabra/Glasnevin one of the biggest issues raised on the doors in damaged /broken footpaths. The Sinn Féin team will support auditing all footpaths and putting in place a programme of footpath restoration so everyone can walk and move around their local area confidently and safely. 

I have always been a voice for a fairness and equality for all. I believe that everyone in all our communities must be able to feel safe and included. Arson attacks on accommodation for asylum seekers have no place in our society and I condemn these attacks.