Gerard Craughwell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

One of the things that has come back in the survey is that we should regulate rent. This would give young couples the time to build capacity. There is a lot of talk at the moment about putting in an additional subvention through the Department of Social Protection in rent allowances and the like. Dr. Lyons made the point that a 5% increase in rent allowance will probably cause rents to go up by 10%. That was certainly the case with house prices. If we control rents, and control lending on the other side, we might find a balance somewhere.