We have a national emergency in the housing sector according to Simon Coveney.

The new Housing Minister has said that homelessness and housing are the single biggest issues facing the new administration.

He says the Programme for Government, which is expected to be published this week, will contain a comprehensive plan to tackle the crisis.

Simon Coveney hopes that he can end the emergency in his new role as Minister: “it’s gonna be a real challenge for me because I think housing and homelessness is the single biggest issue facing the Government.

“I think we have a national emergency that needs a response that is comprehensive and so I have been working late hours trying to start the process of putting that response together.

“The programme for Government will be clear within the first hundred days we will have what I hope will be a very comprehensive response.”