Independent TD Mick Wallace has told Newstalk that he would jump at the chance to become Ireland’s first Minister for Housing.
The Wexford politician said that he could not work with any ‘neo-liberal grouping’ but is open to conversation with any party, along with his fellow Independent Clare Daly.
“It would be an absolute dream for me (to become Minister for Housing), but could I work with a neo-liberal grouping?” asked Wallace rhetorically.
“I’m sorry but I couldn’t. I think I would have to take responsibility and walk from politics before I could work with a neo-liberal grouping.”
Then, in the next breath, he joked, “But we’ll talk to any scumbag.”
Calls for a dedicated Minister for Housing have increased since the General Election, with news today that today’s rents are 0.4% higher than they were at the height of the boom in 2007.
Niamh Randall of the Simon Communities has called on the next government to see housing and homelessness as a “red line issue,” and called for a Minister for Housing when it was revealed that there has been a rise of almost 50% in the number of people in emergency accommodation.
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