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

I thank the Deputy. Each local authority came back with information on the number of additional staff they will require and the funding they will need out to 2021. We are now engaging with them in terms of the actual funding we have, and what that means in terms of how many new staff can be hired and how they may have to reallocate staff within their own planning authorities which are the sections within local authorities that deal with this matter.

Dublin City Council has already recruited additional staff. A lot of recruitment needs to take place in order to provide the additional 50 or 60 staff required. We are in a bedding down period and are now moving towards more rigorous enforcement. We have had 300 or more notifications to avail of exemptions, that is, people who want to continue to home share but who will not be involved in short-term lettings unless it is under the 90-day cap. We have had 16 requests for a change of use. We have had 370 complaints from members of the public. A total of 152 people received warnings from the council and 45 concerned property owners were subsequently issued with section 154 warning notices further to subsequent inspections. Some 160 of these cases were subsequently resolved to the satisfaction of the council without the need to initiate court proceedings, which means that properties were put back into use for long-term letting or were sold. There are 165 ongoing investigations. That gives the Deputy an example of the significant work which is already under way, and that is before all of the new additional staff have been hired.

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