A survey has found that just over half of people believe the “Take Back The City” housing protests have successfully raised questions about the property sector in Ireland.
The homelessness activists occupied empty buildings in Dublin in the past few months and also brought the capital to a standstill in September with a sit-down protest over the housing crisis.
Up to 53% of those asked in the survey recently conducted by iReach feel that the housing protest organisation has been successful in raising questions about the Irish property sector, with 62% of respondents in Connacht and Ulster believing in the group’s success.
However, only 28% of people agree with the occupation of private or public property as a form of demonstration, while 64% of older adults disagree with such occupations as a means of protest.
The findings also demonstrate a lack of faith from the public in the Government’s approach to the housing and homelessness.
66% of people were not confident that Minister for Housing Eoghan Murphy’s most recent plan would be a successful mechanism to combat problems in the housing market. Under the proposal set to come into effect next June, landlords will be banned from renting properties on Airbnb in areas of high housing demand.
Furthermore, only 10% of respondents answered that the Government is doing sufficient work in ending the housing crisis, with 46% of the population who don’t think that housing and homelessness are among the Government’s priorities.
The most popular potential solution to tackle the housing crisis among all the people surveyed is that of increasing housing supply (68%), with stricter rent controls (52%) also seen as a viable option alongside more co-operation with local authorities (53%).
