Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I know the Taoiseach has difficulty with counting when it comes to housing. In fact, given that he cannot even tell us how many new homes were built last year, I can understand why he is struggling with the rent-pressure zone figures. He is right that the daft.iereport only considers the asking rents for new tenancies. However, the ESRI-RTB reports look at all tenancies. In quarter one of last year, they increased by 7%; in quarter two of last year they increased by 6%; and in quarter three of last year they increased by 9%. The data on all tenancies indicate that the 4% cap simply for the tenants covered by it, simply does not work.

It is not that we want rent controls that are too stringent; we would just like some that work. My non-rhetorical questions are the ones the Taoiseach avoided the first time. Will the Government accept that rent pressure zones on the basis of evidence are not working? Will it move to introduce genuine rent certainty, so that families are not paying astronomical rents they cannot afford or being forced into homelessness because of the failure of the policies the Government introduced in 2016?

See this speech in context