We admit to the attraction of leftie arguments that seldom hold sway in Parliament, but at least reflect exasperation with modern neoliberal non-solutions stalled-out around just about every government initiative imaginable. Certainly, lefties are less likely to be bamboozled by arguments that the unhoused are served by ‘just building more’ middle-class and luxury housing’ for renters and owners with deep pockets.
Here’s a suitable leftie opinion enticing us from the Republic of Ireland, offered up by in Rebel News.
Offering up his article as a ‘silver bullet’ to shoot down the Irish housing crisis, Smyth documents the rising number of people who are unhoused.
During COVID, emergency shelter was provided for people who were unhoused. As for the precariously housed who might lose their housing, Ireland banned evictions for a period of time in order to keep even more people from becoming unhoused.
And indeed did this national policy reduce the flow of unhoused arriving on Irish streets? Logic suggests it must have done so. So do after-the-fact statistics. Might far more stringent eviction bans have upon the housing crisis in Ireland?
Keeping in mind that the housing crisis continues to worsen, Smyth calls for a program of house building that will be permanently affordable for people with very low incomes. He also finds encouragement in a program rolled out in Northern Ireland.
Read more in REBEL: A Silver Bullet for the Housing Crisis
