THE HOUSING CRISIS is a social catastrophe. We need a circuit breaker, a game changer, something that can reset this downward spiral of policy failure of successive governments.

I have long argued that making housing a human right in Ireland would provide that fundamental reset, a new approach that would guide all policy and action with one singular goal – to ensure everyone has a home. Over two years ago, the Housing Commission, an official body set up by the Government, recommended that a right to housing should be inserted into the Constitution. Since then, the Coalition has let that recommendation gather dust on the shelf, all the while ramming through rental reforms to the benefit of large investor landlords.

Tomorrow, I will bring forward a Bill to the Dáil containing the Housing Commission’s wording for a referendum on a right to housing. It has never been more clear that we need a right to housing in our Constitution and laws – just look at the scale of misery being caused in its absence.

An entire generation is stuck in their childhood bedrooms or being forced to emigrate; the most recent National Youth Council survey showed seven out of 10 young people are considering leaving the country. The Irish State and its successive governments have failed them, failed to build sufficient social and affordable housing, instead prioritising investor funds and developers. As a result, rents and house prices are now completely out of reach.

We have the highest levels of evictions since the Great Famine. In 2024, there were 16,546 households issued with eviction notices in the private rental sector. In 2025, there........

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