Is the Government treating single people fairly? 

Labour TD Conor Sheehan has called for a Dáil debate on the impact of the housing crisis on single people, who he claimed Government policies have ‘consigned to the scrap heap’. 

On The Hard Shoulder, journalist Andrea Smith said she “doesn’t know where to begin” on the topic given the impact of being single on her life. 

“Household expenses, generally, are fixed,” she said.

“And when you’re single, it’s all coming out of the one pot - when you’ve got somebody else to share the load, it’s great. 

“Things like mortgage payments, they’re all down to you.” 

Ms Smith added that when things go wrong, a single person “can really be in trouble” with very little support. 

“That happened to me a few years ago,” she said. 

“I was in court twice for the repossession of my house. 

“Now, I saved my house in the end but there was no safety net for me.

“When you’re single and you lose a job, it all comes down to you.” 

State support

Ms Smith added that “obviously”, the State should support families. 

However, she added it would be nice if singletons got further support. 

“I just think society prioritises marriage and families over single people - and I totally get that,” she said. 

“They need to prioritise children but there’s absolutely nothing there for single people. 

“If we run into trouble, it’s just tough luck for us.” 

Budget Day in 2025. Picture by: Leah Farrell/© RollingNews.ie

Ms Smith added that single people pay taxes at the same rate as married people, while not having children means they receive less money from the State. 

“When you’re single and you haven’t had children, you’re paying into the pot the whole way through your working life,” she said. 

“You’re not taking time out - and you should take time out if you have a family, obviously - but we don’t do that. 

“And yet there’s no kind of incentive or reward for us at the end. 

“I just think that really they could do with throwing us a bone every now and again - because they don’t.” 

Ms Smith concluded that all her single friends have the “same problem”.

Main image: A single woman. Picture by: Alamy.com