Income limits to get on housing list causing ‘catastrophic situation’ in Donegal

Families in Donegal are being denied social housing if there is any supplementary income to their minimum wage - an issue that has been deemed “a national emergency”.

They will be over the income limit if they claim the Working Family Payment or any other social welfare payment, which they are entitled to claim, says Jimmy Brogan, the Donegal county councillor.

“As the government closes down for the summer holidays my motion for Donegal County Council management to contact the Minister for Housing, James Browne, and demand that the income limits allowed to get on the housing list are raised considerably is still waiting for a hearing despite having been passed at the January meeting of the council,” he said.

“At the moment, many struggling families are prevented from getting on the social housing list because the income allowed to get on the list is so low. This means that many working people who get the minimum wage cannot get on the council housing list if there is any other income coming into the household.

“The annual minimum wage for someone working 40 hours per week is just over €28,000, and the income limit for a single person to get on the housing list is €30,000. For a couple, it is €31,500, and it’s the same figure for a single working parent with two children. These working families will be over the income limit if they claim the Working Family Payment or any other social welfare payment, which they are entitled to claim.

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“These families will be excluded from the housing list and from HAP (Housing Assistance Payment as well which is only paid to people who are entitled to housing.”

Cllr Brogan added that this is an ongoing problem and high rents have exacerbated the problem, despite assurances that the matter will be reviewed.

“Successive governments have refused to raise the income limits sufficiently because it will mean that the housing list will explode and it will show that this government have no plan to deal with housing,” he added. “This is a national emergency and denying the problem by pretending the need is smaller than it really is will not help.

“Since January, I have been contacted by scores of people from different parts of Donegal and from outside the county, who are in this situation. Families with young children where the parents are “getting up early in the morning”, working and doing their best to provide for their families, but can’t get on the social housing list.

“This is while the cost of rental is unaffordable for a lot of people, if they can even find a house to rent. At the same time, the cost of buying a home is completely out of reach for many working families. The number of council homes being built must be increased massively and the income allowance for these families has to be raised as soon as possible, so working families can get the much-needed support they need.

“Minister James Browne recently, in response to a question from me, said his department are reviewing income limits, examining reports, coming up with action plans and consulting with stakeholders, but the truth is that nothing has changed in the last few years, despite the cost of living increases and a much needed increase in the minimum wage.

“Just like previous Ministers for Housing, James Browne is failing to change the catastrophic situation which many young families and single people find themselves in. I am once again calling on Minister Browne to raise the income allowed to get on a social housing list considerably and to do this immediately to help the many working families and prevent further numbers falling into homelessness. People desperately need urgent action and not just more reviews and reports.”