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“Mai and Michael Kelly of Kilcoole are being evicted by the end of this year because their landlord is selling up after their 20 years of residence in the home. Michael, who is a double amputee, has been in St Vincent’s Hospital since December.
“This is an unfairness that is embedded into the system. Wicklow County Council can’t offer this couple a home because the man was working last year and therefore does not meet the threshold for social housing.
“Unfortunately, this is not a unique situation, and these
“I am particularly worried about this couple because Michael has a physical disability, as a double amputee, and is particularly vulnerable.

Mai and Michael Kelly
atest press release from Jennifer Whitmore TD, issued on Friday, June
26th 2026…

cases prop up all the time. You often see couples that have been renting their entire lives who then retire and seek to get social housing, and they have to wait 12 months until they can go on the list. It makes absolutely no sense.”
It is imperative that this policy is reviewed and indeed changed. Bureaucratic red tape should not mean that a couple might become homeless by the end of the year, it just is not acceptable.”