Joe Costello (Dublin Central, Labour)

We agree that every landlord should be registered and that is the key. I hope the mechanism in the Bill effects that purpose because it is very important that happens.

Rent supplement should not be paid directly to the tenant but to the landlord. That should be done by the local authority. That is the way it is done under the rental accommodation scheme and I do not see why it should not be done in all cases in order that we know precisely what happens. In many cases, the landlord requires a top-up from the tenant's social welfare payment and it puts him or her in penury. Another poverty trap is being imposed by rent supplement. The whole area needs to be examined. I compliment the Minister on what he has done, but we now have a situation where the Department of Social Protection will be responsible for tax. Local authorities, under the auspices of the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, are responsible for the housing side of it, with the Department of Health and Children's community welfare officers responsible for rent supplement payments. Needs assessment is done by local authorities. We now have three Departments involved in the area.

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