Eoghan Murphy (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

In September 2017, I signalled that we were embarking on a change management programme with the Residential Tenancies Board to make it a proper, independent regulator for the sector and to find balance for both tenants' rights and landlords' rights. Key to that is the issue of the deposit, as the Deputy pointed out, in terms of the security it gives to the landlord and the money that is owed to the tenant. As part of the change management programme, we are trying to progress a proper deposit protection scheme for tenants and landlords. The Deputy is right to point out that the rates that would be received for such a scheme today would not cover the administrative costs of the scheme. That is one of the reasons that it was deferred. I have put it back on the table because there are enough concerns of people on both sides to make sure there is security around this form of payment. It is important to note that any new system would need to have flexibility so a tenant could get the deposit back in time to put it down as the deposit for the next rental property. Issues like that have to be worked out but it is part of the process we are embarking upon at the moment. Those changes form part of the priority legislation that is on the A table for this session.

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