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

If a request is made to me, of course, I will consider it but it would have to be based on a significant amount of evidence. We could bring in something that could as an unintended consequence undermine the supply of those types of homes completely. To give tenancy rights to a student who might only live in the home for a number of months of the year and all of a sudden open them to the rights under the Residential Tenancies Act whereby they could be there for up to six years without serving things like a notice to quit and giving the formal periods involved in that could mean that a lot of people, for example, elderly people, who have students staying in their accommodation might not even think of that because for their own safety and security, they would want the ability to evict a student if the relationship between that person and the student, who is living in that person's home, has broken down. We must be careful in respect of bringing in something that might end up undermining supply in the first place even though the measure is intended as a protection. If something is brought to me for consideration, I will consider it as Minister with responsibility for this area and consult with the Minister for Education and Skills.

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