Gerald Nash (Louth, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I will be brief in the interests of letting as many colleagues as possible in to discuss the amendments. I will speak on amendments Nos. 16, 19 and 23 in my name. Amendment No. 16 is drawn from the Bill I referred to earlier that was debated on Second Stage in the name of my colleague, Deputy Bacik. It seeks to strengthen protections for renters who are being evicted on the basis of renovations to a dwelling.

Amendment No. 19 allows for existing Part 4 tenancies to become tenancies of indefinite duration, as provided for in the Bill, but without requiring the consent of the landlord. The Bill exclusively provides for tenancies of indefinite duration where they are new Part 4 tenancies or where the landlord consents, which is problematic for us if we are to move towards a European-style progressive, civilised rental system.

Amendment No. 23 is again from the same Bill, so we have rehearsed these arguments here before in this House, as have other parties and Deputies. The amendment would require that details of previous tenancies, any refurbishment works relied upon justifying a change in rent and amounts of rent payable under all tenancies are published in the national tenancy register. We believe that is a reasonable amendment and it aims to achieve a greater level of transparency.

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