Labour is calling for a national affordable housing scheme to be established after Census figures revealed almost 7,000 people were homeless or in emergency accommodation last April.

Housing spokesperson, Jan O'Sullivan TD, said the figures have "risen considerably".

She said: "With the vast majority of homeless people centred in the Dublin region, it is clear that the issue of affordability in the housing and rental market needs to be urgently addressed.

"There has been much focus on social housing in this discussion, but we also need to ensure that affordable housing is available for rent or purchase for the many people on low or middle incomes who simply can't afford to buy a house in the current context, especially in Dublin.

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"There is now a strong argument for a national affordable housing scheme to be put in place. Despite the fact that the State has put up the funding to provide infrastructure for sites for housing construction and that 700 publicly owned sites have been identified for mixed tenure development, local authorities have no state scheme on which they can rely to ensure homes on these sites are affordable.

"We need to see a sense of urgency about getting on with building social housing, using empty homes, and ensuring through a national scheme that homes that are built are affordable. As the numbers grow, that is the only way there will be light at the end of the tunnel."

(CD/LM)