Dr. Aideen Hayden:

We would see such a system rolling out over a period of years. An NCT-style inspection certificate for a property could be valid for a period of years, as with the car NCT certificate. Deputy Ó Broin raised an interesting point that it could be done over a period of years through the local authority inspection programme if it could be guaranteed to reach all rented properties over a period of time. We would not be remotely prescriptive on that.

Threshold has done some work, through a subcommittee of Dublin City Council and with the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland. A report was produced for the housing strategic policy committee in the council. One of the proposals was that the current requirement for a BER certificate for all rented properties could be expanded very simply to include minimum standards and, as illustrated by the "RTÉ Investigates" Nightmare to Let programme and issues such as overcrowding, it would include requirements for fire safety.

Rather than a BER certificate, there would be a combined certificate which covered all the areas with which the landlord was required to comply. We believe that certificate should be valid for a specified period, unless something happened. It would be similar to how if one has a car crash and the vehicle is wreck, a national car test, NCT, certificate does not remain valid to put it back on the road. If something comes in the way, such as some sort of significant damage, the certificate would cease to be valid.

Prima facie, if one has a certificate, it is valid for a period, it is displayed on the wall of the rented property and can be seen by a prospective tenant to the effect that the property complies with minimum standards. It might be signed by a local authority, or there could be a list of qualified persons who could provide a certificate of compliance similar to when a property is surveyed for conveyancing purposes. That would be attached to any tenancy registered with the Residential Tenancies Board, RTB. When the landlord puts in his or her registration details, ideally at the same time as lodging his or her deposit, although a deposit protection scheme might be an issue for another day, he or she would also lodge a copy of the certificate or the certificate number which goes with the registration. That would provide evidence that the property had been sufficiently inspected and had the certificate of compliance.

People cannot be expected to do this overnight, but as the bedsit ban was rolled out over four years, we think four years would be a reasonable period to roll this out. This could be cost neutral for a landlord. There is no reason it should cost significantly more than a BER certificate. It ought to be tax deductible similar to other costs and expenses. There is no reason a reasonable landlord should regard it as an additional imposition.