Aideen Hayden (Labour) | Oireachtas source

This is a subject to which we will definitely return. The home ownership rate in Ireland has dropped by over 10%. We have moved from having one of the highest rates in Europe to one of the lowest. Not many people realise this.

My second issue, on which I do not want to hog too much time, relates to buy-to-let arrears and particularly the issue of the appointment of rent receivers. It can be very problematic for many tenants when rent receivers are appointed to properties. Some of the behaviour of rent receivers is appalling. The committee's document on mortgage arrears and a more recent report from the Private Residential Tenancies Board by DKM Economic Consultants, Red C Research and Marketing and Ronan Daly Jermyn Solicitors have suggested the legislation be amended to clarify the role of receivers in their stepping into the shoes of landlords. This is to avoid scenarios where rents are being paid but where basic repairs are not being carried out, for example, or where there are legal evictions of tenants because some lenders in the current market — I am not suggesting which ones — want properties back quickly without giving appropriate notice to the tenants. Are the delegates against, in principle, the idea of changing the law to ensure clarity on this issue?