Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

I very much welcome this Bill. It feels as though there is a renewed momentum to change the narrative on housing, at least among the real Opposition. For too long, the suggestions from this side of the House in respect of measures to help resolve the housing emergency, or even to draw attention to the fact that there is one, have been ignored. The Social Democrats called for a rent freeze over a year ago and Fianna Fáil refused to support us. Had that party not sat on its hands, we would have had fewer rent increases over the past 12 months. The same is true of many things in the confidence and supply situation. It has taken the focus away from the critical issues. Not only has that distorted the Government, it has distorted the Opposition as well.

We are all aware that the private rental market is the single biggest avenue into homelessness. This morning the Taoiseach said that homelessness was stabilising at a very high level in Dublin. It is far from stabilising outside Dublin. The Minister of State should know that. People are facing spiralling rents and little or no security of tenure in a market where the balance of power lies predominantly with the landlord.

People are afraid to report the need for even minor repairs because they do not want to remind their landlords of their existence. They just want to pay the money into the bank every month.

This Government's housing policy is predominantly dependent on transferring huge sums of public money directly to private landlords, with an estimated €500 million due to be transferred in 2020 alone. This is the 32nd quarter in a row in which rents have risen. The average rent is now more than double what it was in the Celtic tiger era. Thousands of renters are paying over 70% of their income in rent which is utterly unsustainable. The argument made by the Taoiseach and the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government against a rent freeze is that it would be too expensive or could have unintended consequences. We know what the intended consequences of not having a rent freeze are because we can see them clearly. They are catastrophic for people who find themselves homeless, in emergency accommodation or trying to self-accommodate, which often means sleeping on some one's couch.

The Social Democrats support this Bill but we are likely to seek to amend it on Committee Stage, particularly the tax provision section. We remain to be convinced that an incentive-based scheme is the best way to ensure fair treatment for all in the rental sector. As with the help-to-buy scheme, it could have a distorting impact on the sector and may well disadvantage some people.

I will conclude by saying for the fourth time in the past couple of weeks that what is happening with HAP, which was already problematic, is utterly chaotic. The length of time that people have to wait to go through the HAP administrative system means that it is almost impossible for them to secure accommodation in certain parts of the country. This must be addressed and I will keep on saying it until it is addressed. It seems that no matter what we say in this House, the Minister remains absolutely convinced that what he is doing is right. He really needs to start to listen but that is something that has not been evident up to now.

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