A People Before Profit TD has called on the government to use emergency powers to forcibly seize private property to house Ukrainian refugees.
The comments were made yesterday in the Dáil by Richard Boyd Barrett TD during a discussion on the rapidly depleting housing options for Ireland’s Ukrainian arrivals.
Richard Boyd Barrett calls on the minister to invoke the Emergency Powers Act 1939 to enable the state to seize property in order to deal with housing demand from Ukrainians and other people without a home. Never miss an opportunity to agitate for communism, I guess. pic.twitter.com/QU3EyKIZ2E
— JRD (@JRD0000) May 5, 2022
“I want to discuss the practical issue of how we do what we have to do,” he said.
“Namely, both accommodate Ukrainian refugees and address the housing crisis, which is very severe at present.”
Boyd-Barrett said that there was a unique “opportunity” because of “Putin’s bloody invasion.”
“The fact that there is a war gives the Minister extra powers, and I specifically refer to the Emergency Powers Act 1939, which gives him the power to do extraordinary and unprecedented things,” he said.
“Critically, this includes the power in section 2(2)(g) to “authorise and provide for the acquisition, taking possession, control or user (either by agreement or compulsorily) by… the State of any land or other property whatsoever” in the context of war.”
He added: “We should have used those powers before to get hold of vacant and empty buildings but whatever about that debate, I am appealing to the Minister to now use that power because he is justified in doing so.”
People Before Profit, which attends an annual Marxism conference, has repeatedly called for the removal of private property rights as a solution to housing.
📣 Marxism 2019 is Ireland's largest socialist conference. It's where we discuss the theory & the ideas we need to change the world. Join us for a weekend of debate & discussion! 📣
Tickets available here 👇👇👇https://t.co/Bkte2nuLti
Alex Hotel, Dublin
22nd – 24th Nov pic.twitter.com/qClQQqccJC— People Before Profit (@pb4p) November 13, 2019
Under PBP’s housing policy, private properties that they believe are “underused” will ultimately be “taken into public ownership” – i.e. seized.
In June of 2021, Boyd-Barrett and self-described “Communist” TD Paul Murphy called for the state to “override private property rights” as a means of dealing with the housing crisis.
Hi I'm a Marxist TD… https://t.co/bUNa41vmjx
— Paul Murphy 🏳️⚧️ (@paulmurphy_TD) January 21, 2019
Met a real life aggressive far right populist while canvassing yesterday. He roared "you're a communist." Well yes, I'm a Marxist for a classless society. "Pro-abortion" he said, "pro-choice" I replied. But then, "controlled by George Soros". Ehhhh no sorry, that's just wrong.
— Paul Murphy 🏳️⚧️ (@paulmurphy_TD) May 19, 2019
Hopefully yeah, the economic Marxism can't get here soon enough considering the impending capitalist crisis.
— Paul Murphy 🏳️⚧️ (@paulmurphy_TD) June 12, 2020
“Marxist” TDs say the State must “override private property rights” to fix housing
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