Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

-----but they are not professional landlords. That is something we want to change. We will change it over time if we can. From what I have heard in this evening's contributions, it is safe to say there is a clear need to ensure the residential sector is both an attractive option for tenants and a secure and viable investment choice for investors. The State cannot be the only landlord. There has to be other landlords as well. Ireland has to be a place in which it is viable to invest. I am not talking about people making exorbitant profits, but about investment being viable and it being possible to make a business case for it. Without a doubt tenants have to feel comfortable and safe in that environment. They have to feel they have security of tenure, quality service and a quality home. That is what we want to achieve through our rental sector plans.

Tenants need security of tenure. As long as they have paid their rent and met their obligations they need to be as sure as possible that they will be able to stay in their homes. The flip side of this is that landlords have constitutionally protected property rights that can be delimited only in a proportionate manner to achieve a legally justifiable social common good. In recent years we have improved security of tenure for tenants while maintaining the property rights of landlords as much as possible. I spoke before about trying to get that balance. We are trying to balance the rights of tenants with the property rights of landlords in all legislation. It is not easy to achieve. We would say the Deputies' Bill is a little extreme and goes too far but we do want to achieve the same things, though perhaps in different ways. The Minister, Deputy Murphy, is bringing forward the Bill which was published this week and another in the new year which we think will help to achieve this balance and give tenants more security and durability of tenure.

Turning to the specifics of the Deputies' Bill tonight, it is clear to me that there can be no consideration of the issues relating to security of tenure without an acknowledgement of the problems that can be caused by the appointment of receivers to rented dwellings. However, the interplay between receivership law and the Residential Tenancies Act is complex. It is imperative that we do not make any amendments which either make matters worse or lead to legal uncertainty. Nevertheless, there is no question that action needs to be taken in this area, but any action taken must be well informed, considered and legally sound. The Minister, Deputy Murphy, has again flagged that this is something he will address and bring more clarity to in the Bill coming forward in the new year.

Under section 5 of the strategy for the rental sector, my Department established a working group with representatives from the Departments of Justice and Equality, Finance, and Business, Enterprise and Innovation to examine the scope for amending legislation to provide for greater protection of tenants' rights during the receivership process. The objective was to protect the rights of tenants during the receivership process by ensuring that persons appointed as receivers would be required to fulfil the key obligations of a landlord. To inform its work, the working group sought legal opinion on the feasibility of amending legislation to provide greater protection of tenants' rights during the receivership process. We will deal with that in the Bill ahead. The application of any landlord obligations onto a receiver is legally complex and needs to be carefully considered. Arising from consideration of the working group's report by the Minister, Deputy Murphy, legislative change will likely form part of the considerations in framing further amendments to the Residential Tenancies Act in 2019.

The Government recognises that rent increases in certain student-specific accommodation are also giving rise to significant concern and that it is important that the Government actively address barriers to educations and any limit to the choice of educational course pursued. I am conscious that my time is up but I was interrupted slightly so I might take a few more seconds to finish this point. My Department is working with the Department of Education and Skills and with the Minister of State, Deputy Mitchell O'Connor, to examine the wide range of student accommodation types and auxiliary services available with a view to considering the issue of pricing including, if appropriate, new regulatory or legislative proposals. There is a commitment to do that in the Bill coming forward. The Department is engaged with the Office of the Attorney General to scope out, with the benefit of information provided by the Department of Education and Skills and the purpose-built student accommodation sector, the legal feasibility of introducing some related amendments in the Residential Tenancies (Amendment) Bill 2018 as it passes through the legislative process in the House. That probably will be also dealt with on Committee Stage of the next Bill.

There is more I want to say but I will say it at a later stage.

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