Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for his response. The difficulty for many on this side of the House is that for a long time we advocated for rent certainty when that was the right policy but rents have now risen so high that a rental increase of 2%, 3%, 4% or possibly 5% is not sustainable, particularly for renters who have experienced a more than doubling in the cost of renting in the past decade. There have been 40% rental increases in Dublin since 2016 and 20% increases across the State. I accept the Minister's bona fides with regard to his intention to bring something forward but my concern, particularly given where inflation is going, is that if there is any delay or lag in that, we could have the intolerable situation of the cap that has been in place as a result of the Government legislation being higher than the rent pressure zones. If the Minister brings something forward that tackles that issue, he will have willing allies on this side of the House but it needs to be done as a matter of urgency and preferably before inflation hits or passes 4%, as a precautionary measure. I ask that he give an indication of what he is proposing. That might give Deputies on this side of the House and renters some reassurance.

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