‘I’d sooner live in a tent’ - Ballymun pensioner protesting rent hikes
Dozens of protesters gathered in Ballymun today to demonstrate their opposition to Dublin City Council’s rent hikes, which are due to come into effect from April 6 .
In attendance was Annie McCormack who has lived in Burren Court, an older persons' complex in Poppintree, Ballymun, for 15 years. Having quickly moved in following the sudden death of her husband, she told Dublin Live if she had known what the conditions would have been like she never would have accepted it.
"I am 14 and a half years waiting for them to put doors on my wardrobe," Annie said. "I’m waiting for a door that was supposed to be put in prior to me moving in, between the kitchen and the hall, that never came to pass."
For Annie, the issues go far beyond cosmetics. Dealing with lung problems and recovery from hip and knee replacements, she says the environment is actively harming her.
"The bedroom is not fit for human consumption. I wouldn’t put a dog with the mange in it," she said. "The rain comes in my bedroom window onto my hospital bed. I’ve been to the liaison officer who says, 'I’ll report it, I’ll report it,' but this has gone on over three weeks. I even got a letter from my doctor stating everything that was wrong with me, but the person above the liaison officer is away on holiday and never comes out to view the old folks' places.
"Two men came out and looked at the window that’s never been replaced, and three weeks later I received a letter stating it was perfectly fine. How they can say that, I’ll never know. A blind man could see the problems, but they had the cheek to tell me it’s perfect."
Having pleaded for her maintenance issues to be solved for a decade and a half, Annie is now facing a rent increase that she cannot afford. With a fixed income, Annie says she “never thought I’d live like this” and has to manage her finances “day by day.”
"The rent has been going up and going up. They want to put it up to nearly €52 and I’m on an old age pension. I can’t afford that," she explained, stating the loss of her fuel allowance puts her in further jeopardy. "I’m down to €261 per week. How am I supposed to manage paying rent, the chemist, the ESB, and a bit of shopping? I couldn’t go into Lidl or Aldi with €100 worth of shopping; I just couldn't afford it."
Rising costs have forced Annie to ration her heat and she uses hats, socks, blankets and anything else she thinks of that doesn’t raise her bills. "If I put the heat on one day for two hours, I can’t put it on the next. I’m sitting at home with a hat and blankets."
"My son fought for Ireland with the United Nations for 17 years. What did they ever do for us? Nothing. Shame on every one of them sitting in their offices lovely and warm and cosy, not living where I’m living, where it’s freezing cold," she said.
"I never thought in my whole life I’d end up like this. I’d sooner live in a tent, and that’s the honest truth. It’s absolutely disgraceful."
The incoming new Differential Rent Scheme will affect all social housing tenants across Dublin City Council and has been introduced to address the shortfall in funding needed to properly tackle the housing maintenance needs for the city. However, Community Action Tenants Union (CATU) representative Helen Moynihan said that this burden should not be placed on Dublin’s most vulnerable citizens.
“That money should be coming from central government, it should not be coming out of the pockets of tenants who already are feeling the pinch of the cost of living at the moment. Where do they think money is going to come from, we can’t afford it,” Helen said.
Another tenant who has faced decades of issues is Linda Roddy, who spoke about living in a house that’s constantly flooded, has had long-standing sewage issues, and she fears carbon monoxide poisoning due to smoke filling up the living room anytime she lights a fire. While Linda had ambitions to purchase her council home, she has now waited 15 years for her maintenance issues to first be solved.
Referencing Dublin City Council’s planned new headquarters , which are expected to cost upwards of €670 million, she asked why they can’t spend that money on fixing up houses. “I will never be able to buy my house, I can’t get on the property ladder now. We have put three deposits worth into that house waiting for the problems to be solved,” Linda said.
Mother of three Paula also spoke about living in a house that’s in dire need of maintenance, and said she’s watched her rent rise from €120 to €243 in recent times. “I could have a mortgage from that money,” she said. With “a house that’s falling down around me,” she cannot comprehend how she’s facing a rent increase when “my son is sleeping in a damp bedroom, and the ceiling is falling through.”
People Before Profit Councillor Conor Reddy stressed that it was not too late to stop the rent hike and encouraged people to continue protesting, not just for their area but for the entire country. “These rent increases are about dismantling the idea of social housing,” he stated.
“Our expectations are on the floor. When we wait for 15 years we’re broken and don’t expect much. This is the death blow they want to deal to our expectations of wanting somewhere affordable to live,” Cllr Reddy said.
Citing “record rents, profiteering landlords, and homelessness that increases month after month,” he said Dublin City Council might be the first to impose rent hikes, but that if this goes through they “won’t be the last.”
He believes there are alternatives that could address the council’s need for maintenance funds without hitting tenants directly. A proposed amendment from Cllr Reddy and Hazel de Nortuin at last year’s budget, sought to raise rates not on tenants but on the city’s largest businesses. However, it was rejected with a tally of 31 against and 29 in favour.
“The amendment we put forward would have brought in 60 million. What was the outcome? Fine Gael, Fianna Fail, the Labour Party, the Green Party, and some independents voting against that alternative. When they tell you they have no choice, that is nonsense. They had another choice that night and they did not take that,” he said.
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