People living in constant stress because of defects in their homes, Dáil hears

Eva Osborne

People are living in constant stress because of defects in their homes, the Dáil has heard.

Politicians have been debating a motion calling for reform of the Defective Concrete Blocks Grant Scheme.

The scheme applies to the owners of homes in Clare, Donegal, Limerick, Mayo, and Sligo, where their homes are damaged due to the use of defective concrete blocks containing excessive amounts of mica or pyrite.

Opposition TDs want the scheme to be extended to more homes and to acknowledge the mental health impact.

Speaking in the Dáil, Sinn Féin Deputy Pearse Doherty said people are worried all the time.

"People are still living with fear every time there's a red weather warning, forced to watch its cracks spread and walls shift as their home crumbles right around them," he said.

"I think the University of Ulster study summed it up best when it described it as 'an earthquake in slow motion'.

"The study laid bare the real toll of this crisis, the mental health toll, the trauma, the stress."