Mr. Ivan Grimes:

I previously mentioned that we will be taking the purchase of private rented tenancies on a case-by-case basis because of the sheer volume of the exodus from HAP and RAS. Our HAP place finder service has developed an excellent personal relationship with estate agents and landlords. For example, if a HAP tenant is allocated a social house by us under choice-based letting, we endeavour to keep that property available under HAP. We source an additional tenant. Building up that relationship with estate agents and landlords has worked well.

As regard RPZs, two of the electoral districts in the metropolitan area are designated as RPZs. As a local authority, we do not have a direct role or remit in terms of initiating the designation of RPZs but we have raised within the chamber and nationally with the Minister and his Department the fact that there are issues in this regard. I referred to Dungarvan and Tramore but there are also other coastal towns where it is not an issue of finding a property to rent because there are no such properties. There is a significant shortage of rental properties in those coastal towns. Short-term letting is having an impact in that regard. It is essential that those areas be designated as RPZs as quickly as possible.