Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Bill and thank the Minister for bringing it forward. I fully acknowledge that we still have not got adequate protections for tenants across our legislative framework. Standards in tenancies are not adequate, quick resolution of disputes does not occur, and observation of obligations under existing legislation needs to be embedded much better. There are also unacceptable cases where these systems are being abused by landlords. However, it is fundamentally important we promote a viable tenancy sector, and the solution to this lies in the Land Development Agency in terms of the cost rentals and in the new initiatives being taken to ensure we can make tenancies affordable.

I would warn strongly against some of the proposals advocated by others such as rent freezes, blanket bans on terminations and banning investors from buying in the market. We need long-term investors who have the patience to wait for steady returns. That is what will build a sustainable market and we need to keep that in mind.

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