South and East Belfast Sinn Féin -- Building an Ireland of Equals

Maskey to highlight Concerns at Housing Executive Conference

Published: 22 April, 2006

South Belfast Sinn Fein MLA Alex Maskey will be high lighting a number of concerns in relation to the Housing Executive's South Belfast Sector Study when he attends a conference on the study on Thursday, 27th April, in the Malone Lodge Hotel at 10am. (The conference has been organised by the Housing Executive to discuss the South Belfast Sector study).


Cllr Maskey MLA said,

" I welcomed this report when it was published as it identified the huge problems which we are faced with in this area of the city. And I would also welcome the fact that such meetings are being organised to allow communities and their representatives to respond to the study.


" The stark reality is that South Belfast is a "housing contradiction". I believe that the Executive's study shows how housing and planning policies have failed the South Belfast constituency thus far.


" It is my intention to raise a number of general points which a believe have been highlighted by the report, namely that:

(1) the Housing Executive are not doing enough to acquire land for social housing in areas with high waiting lists.

(2) There is an overdevelopment of apartments being built for property speculation, and yet many more are being given planning permission.

(3) Many apartments lie empty in an area which has 635 people registered homeless, and first time buyers are priced out of the housing market.

(4) Landlords are keeping families out of the housing market by converting many properties into HMO's. The proliferation of HMO's has a detrimental effect on the community.

(5) The Housing Executive has no strategic plan or policy to provide adequate housing to meet the demand in South Belfast. Property developers and landlords are forcing house prices sky high. Uncontrolled planning is leading to:- high waiting lists, high prices, high number of hidden homeless, districts with no sustainable communities.


" It is my hope that the Housing Executive will take on board the many views which exist on this study. For our part we will, not only be expressing our analysis but will be assessing the many other views which will be represented at this conference and developing a more in depth response to the study which we will present to the Executive before the consultation period ends".

ENDS