Dr. Aideen Hayden:

The issue of damp very much relates to energy efficiency. It is estimated that approximately 20% of rented dwellings have a building energy rating, BER, of F or G, which is pretty low. More than 55% are likely to be considered to have poor energy efficiency, with BERs between D and G. Research by the ESRI has found that households living in relatively energy inefficient properties spend substantially more - up to €419 more per year - on energy than households with better BER ratings. That is a very important factor to take into account when we are looking at issues such as damp, for example.

On overcrowding, we would be in complete agreement. There is an absolute need and requirement to have a definition of overcrowding within the legislation. There are a number of existing definitions, as Ms Carroll has pointed out. There is the 1966 definition and there are also good examples of overcrowding legislation to be drawn from the international framework. However, one way or the other, the fact of the matter is that there are serious examples of overcrowding that go well beyond the enforced overcrowding that we are seeing because of a lack of accommodation. We are seeing situations in our services where shift workers are, for example, sharing beds at different times of the day and night. This is not and should not be a race to the bottom. We have to bear in mind that we have an obligation to ensure that we have robust legislation, particularly around the health and safety of tenants, which has to be our primary consideration.

I am very glad the issue of licensees was raised. We have serious concerns. We need legislation over and above the existing residential tenancies legislation to incorporate the protection of licensees. It is one of the most significant issues coming into our services at the moment and licensees have little or no protection under Irish law. We would like to see the Residential Tenancies Acts amended to include licensees for protection.

On the difference between social and private rented housing, for many years we have increasingly been seeing a fudge on where social housing ends and private rented housing starts. Under the Rebuilding Ireland strategy, two thirds of the social housing requirement is to be provided through the private rented sector. Under the 2009 Act, somebody who is receiving support in the private rented sector is deemed to be in receipt of a social housing support. It is Threshold's position, and has been for a very long time, that social housing tenants and private rented tenants should be brought together under the same regime, particularly in respect of dispute resolution and enforcement of tenancy rights. As matters stand - the European courts have spoken on this - local authorities are acting as judge and jury in the context of their own tenants. There is no independent mechanism for tenants to air their disputes outside of the body that is, in effect, their landlord. From the processes of natural justice, we have taken the position for a very long time that we want to see the residential tenancies legislation extended to incorporate all social housing tenants, whether they be of voluntary housing associations, approved housing bodies, traditional council housing or social housing tenants with their supports provided through HAP, RAS, rent supplement or any other format. We think the distinction between private and social tenancies is really not relevant as we are going forward.