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

I thank the Deputy for those questions. The most recent numbers that we have are from the Residential Tenancies Board, RTB, rent index for the first quarter of this year. We do not know if it is a trend because we are still awaiting the figures for the second quarter. Some 3,000 new tenancies were created over that period, tenancies that would not exist but for new landlords coming into the sector. Obviously that is a positive in and of itself. We would like to see if that is a trend and get a better understanding of who those landlords are. We need to find out if this is happening because more build-to-rent properties are being built or because large institutional landlords are entering the market and increasing the stock of rental properties.

Regarding short-term letting, a new team is being put in place in Dublin City Council but the existing planning authority is already working on this issue because it is a planning matter.

I believe we have allocated just over €800,000 for those resources. We estimate that between €2 million and €3 million will be required in the next two to three years to beef up resources across local authorities. It is important to recognise that what we have done in terms of the planning laws is the most progressive change compared with any other city in the world when it comes to short-term letting.

There is another piece, which is the regulation of the platforms. That falls outside my Department. Interaction on that is ongoing.