Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The shorter processes might involve something like a landlord who is in breach of the rent pressure zones legislation. If he or she owns up to that and accepts the sanction, he or she can do that. It is within his or her gift. The RTB pointed out to us that the real value for it of the new investigative and sanction powers is that if someone is breaching the rent pressure zone legislation, it will be able to move on it very quickly, take the case and win it. If the landlord drags the process out to the end, its concern is that, given the timelines provided in the original Bill, that process would be significantly longer than the standard process for a comparable adjudication and fine. The RTB expressed concern about that. Is it fair to say that, in a case where a landlord is unwilling to accept fault, there is a likelihood that the RTB's concern is a valid one and that some of those cases may take longer than would ordinarily be the case under the current regime?

I am still not completely clear about the court confirmation aspect. The RTB, in its determinations today, can make sanctions and publish those determinations, including the details of landlords.

The sanctions can be very high. For example, in the case of third-party antisocial behaviour complaints, they are in the tens of thousands of euro. When we last spoke, the Minister said what is different about this process is that the RTB is doing the investigation, and that is the reason for the sanction. If we look at the determination process of third-party complaints for antisocial behaviour, the adjudicator is doing an investigation and then making a recommendation to the board. I accept the two parties get to present and dispute the facts, and all of that. Obviously, I do not have the benefit of the Attorney General's advice but, essentially, I do not see how the process of this investigation and sanction regime is substantively different from existing adjudications, fines and publications in a way that would warrant this to have a court confirmation where those other determinations and very significant financial fines and publication of details do not warrant court confirmation. I am not trying to be awkward. I am genuinely not clear on this.