Éirígí For A New Republic is organising a ‘Stop The Corporate Takeover Of Housing’ protest in Dundrum on Saturday, June 15th. The family-friendly protest will run from 1pm to 2pm outside the constituency office of government Minister Shane Ross on the main street of the South Dublin village.
Speaking ahead of the protest Brian Leeson said, “Private corporations now control over 2,300 homes in the greater Dundrum area, with plans for thousands more homes and ‘student beds’ on the way. This massive portfolio of rental-housing has been assembled in just over five years.
Over the same time period private sector rents have risen by over 70%., with three-bed apartments now costing over €3,200 per month in one recently built development.
These sky-rocketing rents and similar increases in house prices are driving a gentrification process across South Dublin. The social fabric of our community is being shredded as everyone on low and middle incomes is denied access to secure and affordable housing.
We’ve organised next Saturday’s protest to give people an opportunity to publicly register their opposition to the corporate takeover of housing and wider government housing policies that have put landowners, developers, bankers, landlords and estate agents in effective control of the housing sector.
There are alternative way to do housing that are need-driven as opposed to profit-driven. The creation of a new system of Universal Public Housing has the potential to not only solve the housing crisis, but transform our society for the better.
I’d invite anyone who is affected by the housing crisis, or who cares about those that are, to come along on Saturday to add their voice to the demand for housing justice.”