Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome any debate on this issue. Where a student lives can be an issue. Students have very long commutes. We met some students recently in another committee that I am on and they are travelling extremely long distances, they have a very low income and it is very difficult for them to live or study.

I do not disagree with anything that is being said here but the Government should use more imaginative proposals to assist people who wish to offer accommodation to students. I know about the tax relief that is offered to them and I stand to be corrected on this point but a single individual can rent out a room to students. We should increase this resource to make it more available to couples or even families who live near or adjacent to universities so that they could offer accommodation. In many cases, older people would benefit greatly from the social aspect of having somebody staying in their home. It is attractive for certain individuals at the moment but maybe we could make it more attractive using tax incentives.

The other issue that is probably slightly more difficult is that there used to be a condition in local authorities years ago in respect of people applying for a home and whether an extension could be built onto their own home that would meet their needs. Could we build on that principle? Is it a possibility that we could encourage householders to build on extra accommodation in their home if they are in a zone that is adjacent to a university or a third level institution?

They could then enter an agreement with that university or with the appropriate body for a tenure agreement or whatever it might be. The State could help fund that accommodation, which would also meet the needs of students or people who would benefit greatly from living and having accommodation adjacent to the university.