Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The first thing we have done is change the law, not once but twice, on student accommodation and student renters. The first thing the Union of Students in Ireland asked us to do - I think the Deputy co-sponsored legislation on this - was to change the rule so that a student renter could not be asked to pay four, five or six months' rent up front, which was happening. The law is now very clear. One month's rent up front and one month's deposit is the maximum amount anyone can be charged. The second thing the Union of Students in Ireland and the Deputy's legislation asked us to do was to make sure that students in purpose-built student accommodation only had to give 28 days' notice if they had to leave their accommodation for family or whatever reasons. We took both of those requests on board.

The Union of Students in Ireland, Opposition and Government Deputies and college authorities have told us that the next step must be a new model for student accommodation. I will not stand here and say the model we have at present is working, because it is not. I will be honest in that we need to put in place a new model and we need college-owned affordable accommodation. In my answer to Deputy Bacik, I outlined how I intend to do that. We have set up a working group with the colleges, between the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and my Department, to consider what the new model will look like. I would like to see a cost rental model that works for students put in place. I genuinely believe that could make a substantial difference. What we will not do is provide cheap access to State borrowings, if we do not get an assurance from a university that there will be an affordability piece as well, because we have seen too much college-owned accommodation that is beyond affordable.

I expect to bring forward a new model of student accommodation in the new year. I have already told institutions to prepare their pipeline of projects. I will give the Deputy one example, namely, the Technological University Dublin, which is either the first or second largest institution in the State. It does not own one student room because until now it has not been able to borrow under various borrowing frameworks. We are changing that through the Housing for All strategy. I am saying that we need to change the model. We need to build a lot more college-owned affordable accommodation. We delivered on the two request that were asked of us by the students' unions and Opposition Deputies last year, and we will work with Deputies on this too.

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