Laois Traveller 'squatters' refuse multiple house offers claims councillor

Laois County Council has denied that it treats Traveller housing applicants any differently than other people on the waiting list for a home.

The council has been accused of offering 10 houses to a group that is "squatting" on a site, instead of the maximum of three which other applicants are offered.

Cllr Aisling Moran made the allegations at the September council meeting.

"Travellers have moved onto someone's land, they won't move off. They have been offered 10 houses. I think they won't take one. Anyone else is offered three houses or they're taken off the housing list for a year.

"It should be the same for everyone. They are on this land five years. You get squatter's rights after seven years so in two more years that land is theirs," she claimed.

The Director of Services for Housing Angela McEvoy refuted the claim.

"Regarding Traveller accommodation, there are legal proceedings on some cases so I can't speak about them. They will be treated the same as others," she said. Cllr Moran disagreed.

Laois County Council must provide housing to people unable to house themselves, including those on low incomes, with disabilities, the elderly, the homeless and young people leaving state care with no family home. Homes are offered on a priority basis.

They state that "refusals of two reasonable offers of social housing over a twelve month period will result in a household being deemed to have forfeited their place on the waiting list for a period of twelve months."

There are just six Traveller households living on the roadside or unauthorised sites in Laois, according to the council estimate for 2023. In all, 223 Traveller households live in Laois, 198 are in standard local authority housing, group housing and owner-occupiers, two families were in private rented accommodation, 13 were sharing with family/ friends. Just four families were in halting site accommodation.

Laois County Council will publish a draft Traveller Accommodation Programme for 2025 -2029 later this year.