Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)

I thank Deputy Buttimer for raising the issue. At the outset I point out that social welfare legislation already provides the Department with the authority to refuse, suspend or terminate payment of a rent supplement in the case of a person who has been required to deliver up possession of a dwelling provided by a housing authority or an approved body where the reasons for that requirement include anti-social behaviour or the interests of good estate management. The purpose of the rent supplement scheme is to provide short-term support to eligible people living in private rented accommodation whose means are insufficient to meet accommodation costs and who do not have accommodation available to them from any other source. The overall aim is to provide short-term assistance and not to act as an alternative to the other social housing schemes operated by the Exchequer. There are currently approximately 95,000 rent supplement recipients, for which the Government has provided a sum of €437 million in 2012.

In the case of private rented accommodation, tenancy arrangements involve a contract between the landlord and tenant. The Department has no relationship with the landlord and tenant behaviour is a matter for the landlord in the first instance. There are a number of avenues open to landlords in such cases, including the dispute resolution services for landlords and tenants operated by the Private Residential Tenancies Board and recourse to the Garda Síochána or the courts in the enforcement of law relating to anti-social or criminal behaviour. If necessary, the landlord may seek termination of the tenancy, which if effected would result in the termination of rent supplement.

The programme for Government contains a commitment to review the operation of the rent supplement scheme to ensure tenants receiving long-term support from the State under the scheme are subject to the same type of anti-social behaviour regime as local authority tenants. The most appropriate way for this to happen is for local authorities to take over responsibility for meeting the accommodation needs of these individuals. The Department is currently working with the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government with a view to achieving this goal and the transfer of tenants from rent supplement to local authorities will help to achieve another key Government commitment of removing barriers to employment and returning rent supplement to the original intention of being a short-term income support payment.

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