Eoghan Murphy (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Deputy has posed an important and good question. The recent rent pressure zone legislation, which was passed last week, extends all rent pressure zones out to 2021 and changes the qualifying criteria so that new areas will be designated as rent pressure zones. This legislation is tied to the operation of rent pressure zones. As long as there are rent pressure zones in existence, this legislation will apply. We want to get to a point at which we are regulating the sector. This change in the planning law allows planning authorities to stamp out certain practices. When the housing sector is no longer facing these pressures, the ultimate long-term objective is to have a regulatory system whereby at some point in the future - I cannot say when, but certainly not before 2021 - someone might be able to use a second property for short-term letting in Dublin city.