DONEGAL TD Charles Ward has launched a scathing attack on the government, accusing it of deliberately leaving families in dangerously defective homes to avoid pay-outs and limit costs.
He said this is no longer about mistakes or confusion, it is deliberate.
According to Deputy Ward, homeowners who clearly qualify under I.S. 465 are being shut out by design, with technical interpretations used as a shield while people continue to live in buildings officially classified as dangerous.
Deputy Ward acknowledged that the most recent science points to iron sulphate attack as a factor in the damage of buildings in Donegal.
He stressed, however, that I.S. 465 and other standards continue to recognise mica as a deleterious material.
He said homes with mica content above the recognised threshold and with serious structural damage remain eligible for remediation, and families living in them are at real risk.
Deputy Ward said engineers working for the Housing Agency are refusing applications by claiming the damage is not caused by defective concrete, despite mica being recognised under Irish and European standards as harmful.
He said this is not interpretation; it is a tactic to avoid cost.
Deputy Ward said people are being left trapped in homes that are visibly cracking and deteriorating.
They are afraid to live in their own homes while Ministers hide behind reports and paperwork.
He described the process as deliberately cruel.
Deputy Ward also warned that claims of external sulphate attack are being used as a convenient excuse to refuse cases, even when testing did not examine the areas most at risk.
He said families are being punished for something beyond their control, and the consequences are immediate and brutal.
He said people are watching their homes fail, while their health and finances are suffering and their mental wellbeing is deteriorating.
All while the government continues to argue over wording.
Deputy Ward said he asked the Taoiseach a simple question and demanded a straight answer.
He asked if the the government will instruct the Minister and the Housing Agency to stop twisting the standard, review these cases, and protect families who are clearly living in dangerous homes.
He said the refusal to answer speaks volumes.
He said the government cannot be trusted when it claims to stand with homeowners while quietly closing the door on them, choosing cost control over human safety and leaving ordinary families to pay the price.
