Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Deputy did not ask me in her original question to introduce legislation to prevent lending agencies from selling buy-to-let properties. She asked me to introduce legislation to oblige banks to honour existing leases. That is a tenant rights issue. Under the 2004 Act, lending agencies are obliged to fulfil the tenant rights obligations on a change of ownership. If a problem arises in practice whereby certain lending agencies are either unaware of, or are ignoring, the law, I noted in my reply that discussions are ongoing at Central Bank level to introduce a protocol to ensure all lending agencies are very clear on the rights of tenants under the 204 Act and that even with a change of ownership, they are obliged to continue to comply with the rights of tenants under that Act.

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