Ruling Highlights Serious Concerns Over Living Standards In Social Housing
A landmark ruling has found local authority housing in Ireland is of substandard quality and in breach of Ireland's international legal commitments.
The European Committee of Social Rights found the collective complaint raised serious concerns in relation to living conditions and access to essential services.
There are over 130,000 local authority homes in Ireland - housing up to 355,000 people.
Tenants reported frequent sewage invasions, persistent dampness, mould and contaminated water.
Cecilia Forrestal of Community Action Network and representing the Tenants Collective Action says the decision has been a long time coming:
“It was lodged in 2014,” she said. “The committee then looked at it and investigated to see if it was admissible and to see if it could be investigated.”
“They decided in 2015 that is was admissible and they have now found that Ireland is in violation of Article 16 – which essentially means that Ireland has failed to take decisions and timely measures to ensure that families and children have a right to adequate housing.”
The complaint also warned that no complete statistics on the condition of local authority housing have been completed till 2002.
It also claimed that no national timetable exists for upgrading the national stock.
Ireland is now obliged to “take steps” to address the situation.