Teens get pregnant 'to avail of free local housing'
A POLITICIAN has claimed that a number of young women are getting pregnant solely to increase their chances of being housed by the local authority.
The councillor said a single mother told him she got pregnant so that the council would give her a house.
He even claimed that teens were looking for "advice on how to get pregnant".
Yesterday, Fine Gael councillor Darren Scully, a father of two, stood over the controversial comments that he first made at Tuesday's meeting of Naas Town Council.
But other councillors have distanced themselves from Mr Scully's claims and condemned his views.
"I fully stand over what I said," Cllr Scully told the Irish Independent. "I said there was a small percentage of women in the town of Naas who are getting pregnant so that they can get up the list and get a council house."
Devastated
Cllr Scully said since he made the remarks, he has received a number of calls of support from across the country.
"One clinical nurse in Louth rang me to say she had an 18-year-old in with her this morning and was devastated she wasn't pregnant because all of her friends had gotten houses or flats and she wanted advice on how to get pregnant."
The councillor's comments have enraged some parents, but he said he didn't mean to offend innocent people. "We should be encouraging young women to go out into the workplace, and to get an education and pay for their own house or apartment."
There are 269 people on the social housing list in Naas, and 118 are single parents, said Cllr Scully.
"There needs to be research done on this. One single mother explained to me how her friends had done it and other people have contacted me since to say the same.
"Saying it doesn't happen is putting your head in the sand -- we need proper statistics on it."
Another Naas councillor, Mary Glennon, has slammed Cllr Scully's claims.
"I think he's out of touch with reality. To say that people go through nine months of pregnancy and the trauma of labour to get a house is ridiculous.
"I couldn't believe that a young guy like that would come up with a reactionary statement like that. It's just not that easy to get a social house."
CEO of welfare group Treoir Margaret Dromey said there is "absolutely no evidence" to suggest women are getting pregnant to get a house.
- Eimear Ni Bhraonain
