Patricia Ryan (Kildare South, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank my colleague, an Teachta Ó Broin, for bringing forward this Bill. There is a crisis in the private rental sector, with rents continuing to spiral out of control. I listened to Newstalk yesterday and heard how the residents of an estate in Tubbercurry, County Sligo, received a knock on their doors in recent days to tell them their rent is going up by 70%. Imagine being told you have to find an extra €150 a week for rent. It is extortion, plain and simple. There are 12 rental properties in County Sligo currently advertised on Daft, and 563 advertised on Airbnb. Every month, the number of properties available to rent gets smaller and smaller. Last week, there were 32 properties available to rent in County Kildare on daft.ie. This week, there are 24. Just one of these properties is available at a rental cost within the housing assistance, HAP, limits. Meanwhile, there are 295 Airbnb properties available. In the meantime, the cost of renting a home is spiralling out of control. Rents are now even higher than at the highest point of the Celtic tiger.

The Bill is very simple and will be a most useful tool in ensuring the law is complied with. It is not about penalising holiday rentals. It is about maximising homes for need, not greed. If there are to be short-term rentals, they must be regulated. It is not just about Airbnb. Some landlords have been using booking.comand other sites to avoid the scrutiny of Airbnb. If there are elected representatives engaging in short-term letting, they should declare a conflict of interest.

In recent months there has been an explosion in the number of single people and families with children presenting as homeless. Notices to quit seeking vacant possession from landlords selling their properties now account for over half of all notices to quit. Many of these families do not qualify for social housing as they are just above the limits. The limits have not changed in many years. These families have been renting for years and never expected to be homeless. They have good jobs, but cannot afford the rents of up to €3,200 a month for a four-bedroom house, such as the one that has been advertised in County Kildare. This generation has been locked out of home ownership. This Government and previous Governments, including the Green Party and the Labour Party, are the reason for this. The Government cares more about the institutional investors and vulture funds than any ordinary worker and their family. When in government, we will change this.

See this speech in context