Updated 20:00

Sinn Féin has submitted a motion of no confidence in Housing Minister Eoghan Murphy over his efforts to tackle the housing and homelessness crisis.

The party submitted the motion to the Bills office today – ahead of a debate on September 25th.

As well as calling for Minister Murphy to be removed from office, the motion also calls on the Government to "accept that Rebuilding Ireland has failed and to urgently introduce a new housing plan".

On Newstalk Breakfast this morning Sinn Féin’s housing spokesperson Eoin Ó Broin said the Fine Gael minister has not done enough to tackle the crisis – and he now “must go.”

“The Government’s housing policy is failing and failing abjectly,” he said.

“Eoghan Murphy as the minister responsible for that policy has had a particularly bad 15 months in office.

“Instead what he has been doing for the past number of weeks is not only defending the indefensible but he has also been attacking everybody else – blaming councils, councillors and opposition politicians.

“Eoghan Murphy has to go.”

He said the country needs a housing minister that “has the courage to go into Cabinet and say listen folks, this needs to change, something needs to give.”

“Part of the reason we have tabled this moment at this moment in time is to put extra pressure on the Government to deliver that change on budget day in early October.”

"Totally devoid of solutions"

In a statement, Minister Murphy criticised Sinn Féin and called the motion a 'stunt'.

He argued: "Their primary aim is to garner attention and headlines for themselves. Today’s motion proves that.

"The motion is totally devoid of solutions and will not take a single person off our streets, out of emergency accommodation or into a permanent home. The stunt offers nothing constructive."

He added: "In a Minority Government situation Sinn Fein could have spent all this wasted time getting support from the Oireachtas for their housing plan – they did not because they do not have a plan. My focus remains on delivery and solutions.”

According to the latest Government figures there were 9,891 people accessing emergency accommodation in Ireland in July.

It marks a 21% increase on the figure from July 2017.

Earlier, it was reported that nursing home residents who have left a vacant home behind them could be offered incentives to rent it out under a new plan to tackle the housing crisis.

The Irish Independent reports the deal will be de offered to nursing home residents who are on the Fair Deal scheme.

Figures from the HSE indicate that there are around 22,795 people taking advantage of the scheme.

Additional reporting by Stephen McNeice