Cllr Tony Hassan. Sinn Fein’s housing spokesperson.
The Housing Executive must be allowed to begin building social homes again, Derry Councillor Tony Hassan has said.
Cllr Hassan, Sinn Fein’s housing spokesperson in the city, was speaking in support of a call by Kathleen Bradley, welfare rights advisor at Dove House that the Housing Executive “should be saved.”
Cllr Hassan said: “I fully support the call by Kathleen Bradley that the Housing Executive must be allowed to begin building social homes again.
“Sinn Féin has consistently argued for a radical shake-up of social housing. We believe that all housing functions should be transferred from the Department of Social Development back to the Housing Executive.”
Cllr Hassan said despite problems within the Housing Executive, the “demise” of its role as the main provider of social homes had led to the current housing and homeless “crisis.”
He added: “While many Housing Associations provide an excellent service, since becoming the key providers of social housing, the crisis in Social Housing took root when the British Government took away the right to build from the Housing Executive in the mid nineties this has led to serious problems for people living in areas of high demand.
“The housing crisis cannot be solved by any one person or group but by a collective coming together of all ministers and politicians. and of course the Housing Executive must also be given the role of being the main providers of social housing if we are ever to get out of this current housing crisis.
Tags: