Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)

Rent supplement expenditure increased from €369 million in 2005 to €516 million in 2010. The number of people claiming the allowance increased from almost 60,200 in 2005 to 95,700 as at October 2011, that is, by nearly 60%. There are no plans to expand the scheme by relaxing the eligibility rules, thereby increasing the number of people in receipt of rent supplement. The main strategic emphasis of policy initiatives undertaken by the Department over the last number of years is to return rent supplement to its original incarnation as a short-term income support for people who are renting and have lost their jobs but, in a better labour market, would probably find jobs within a year or so.

Two main initiatives are currently being pursued by the Department to transfer long-term rent supplement recipients to housing solutions supported by local authorities. These are the rental accommodation scheme, popularly known in Dublin as the RAS, and the new housing policy initiative launched in June of this year.

The RAS, which was introduced in 2004, gives local authorities specific responsibility for meeting the longer-term housing needs of people who receive rent supplement for 18 months or more. Local authorities meet the housing needs of these individuals through a range of approaches, including the traditional range of social housing options, the voluntary housing sector and, in particular, the RAS. In June 2011, the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government and the Minister of State with responsibility for housing published a new housing policy framework statement. The object, in terms of reform, is the transfer of the rent supplement scheme to local authorities. One other feature of the rent supplement scheme is that it constitutes a welfare trap in certain cases, acting as a disincentive for people to return to work. A multi-agency steering group involving my Department and the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government is considering the implementation of this transfer.

Additional information not given on the floor of the House

This will help achieve a key Government commitment of removing barriers to employment, while at the same time returning rent supplement to its original purpose, that of a short-term income support payment for those who are temporarily unemployed.

In line with commitments in the programme for Government, the Department is also working closely with the Private Residential Tenancies Board to ensure that rent supplement tenancies comply with the statutory system of tenancy regulation and safeguards. The Department is also working with the Revenue Commissioners to ensure that landlords are tax-compliant.

See this speech in context