Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Anti-Austerity Alliance) | Oireachtas source

When will the Government introduce legislation, which is really needed, for real rent controls? We know the Government's proposal in this regard but we still have not seen the white smoke from the two parties on what they will agree on later today. We need something a lot more serious than this, however.

I would like to send the Tánaiste a Christmas message from a mother of two which I just received on my phone. She wants to thank the Government for giving her landlord a licence for an upward only rent review, which is basically what the Government has introduced for Dublin and Cork where rents have reached saturation point. In fact, most rent increases are now in Meath, Kildare and the Dublin commuter belt with an average increase of €225 per month on Daft.ie. Nothing is being proposed by this Government. We real need real rent controls at 0% in Dublin and Cork, which is the real rate of inflation. Is the Government that beholden to the landlords in this country? Does it seriously think rent controls are an infringement against the market?

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