Seán Crowe (Dublin South West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The latest rent figures from the Residential Tenancies Board show no real relief for renters. It is not a shock to anybody that rents continue to spiral out of control for individuals and families. As the Minister will know, rents keep growing every year and show no real sign of stopping any time soon. As my colleague pointed out in respect of his area, the average rent for a new tenancy is €1,900, although that depends on the area and, in some areas, it is up to €2,000. The most shocking figure is that average rents in Dublin have increased by 100% in ten years. The worrying aspect is that we do not see any real change or anything happening to help people in those circumstances. It is another steep increase that far outstrips what should be acceptable and it is a massive additional cost for workers and families to bear on top of rapid increases in other household bills.

Rents such as those throughout the State are one of the main reasons we are going through a cost of living crisis; of course, that is if you are one of the lucky ones able to find somewhere to rent. As public representatives, we all dread, on a Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday morning or whenever, those families and individuals coming in to our offices, telling us they are facing eviction and asking whether we know of anywhere they can get. One of my colleagues referred to only two one-bedroom vacancies being available in his area, Cork. On Daft this morning, the number of properties available to rent in Dublin 24, which includes more than just Tallaght, where more than 100,000 people live, 16 properties were available to rent. That is the challenge we face.

It is clear the Government's attempts are not working and clearly, the crisis is getting worse. As I said, rents have been increasing for ten years and have gone up and up, and I do not think people have any confidence circumstances will change. Rents and house prices are still increasing far in excess of what is affordable to workers and their families and that is the key issue. The Minister cannot continue with the same approach and expect things to change, and that is the message I appeal to him to take on board. He might have a look at the Sinn Féin motion and the proposals therein and meet us halfway. Let us make some change and give some hope to people who are listening to this debate.

See this speech in context