Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The rent pressure zones are relatively new. We will need a series of data over more than a year and a bit to assure ourselves whether they are working. Let us not forget why they exist. The rent pressure zones are there to ensure we limit rent increases for those who are renting already - more than half of the people who are renting are now covered by them - and are not seeing rent increases of double-digit levels. The Deputy mentioned increases of 4% and 6% - not 9% in one quarter. We will need to see that develop over more time. The Government is always open to new measures and new actions that can assist new tenants and all those who are renting. We need to ensure we do not do anything that is counterproductive. The big concern I have is that the policies proposed by Sinn Féin would be counterproductive because it would result in the entire private market becoming frozen. We would see people essentially doing what happens in other places where there are very strict rent controls, paying extra amounts of rent or cash under the counter-----

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