Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent) | Oireachtas source

One of the biggest problems I have come across is the lack of any security in rental agreements. When a family gets notice to leave, the crisis really hits because no alternative homes are available. That is why these families end up in some circumstances in homeless accommodation. We need to rethink the way we do things when it comes to our housing crisis. That is why I support the progression of this Bill to Committee Stage. We need to rethink security of tenure of homes as well. All we have to do is look at what happens in agriculture. When the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government started in secondary school, the vast majority of farm leases in the country were of 11 months in duration. Today, long-term land leasing of between five and 15 years plus makes up over half of all farm leases. This is because our tax system incentivises long-term leasing. This needs to happen in the housing rental market and should focus on small land owners rather than international companies. If, like farm land, half of all rented homes were under leases of a minimum of five years, then it would leave far fewer families under the threat of homelessness.

The problem of affordable housing is complex and no single measure can promise a comprehensive solution. There are certain risks with some proposals and there could be unintended consequences, but we must take those risks in the interests of all our families. I encourage the Minister to look at the long-term leases in the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and replicate the model in the housing sector to provide security of tenure to families.

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