Ivana Bacik (Dublin Bay South, Labour) | Oireachtas source

It is welcome to hear more detail of the proposed Bill. We will work with the Government, as will all in the Opposition, to ensure it is passed as soon as possible to see protections for those renting through the winter. Will the Taoiseach also commit to introducing stronger legislative backing for the tenant in situscheme? The problems are the red tape, the inconsistency and the fact that last year the State spent €893 million on subsidies to private landlords, such as the HAP. This is money that could have been better spent by being invested in returning housing to social housing stock. Many of the homes that were previously council homes went into private ownership and are now in the private rental sector. We need to see these homes being brought back into social housing. We could strengthen the tenant in situscheme by, for example, requiring that if landlords want to evict a tenant in order to sell they must notify the local authority first and give it a right to purchase. This is the type of provision that would make the tenant in situ scheme much more meaningful and effective in protecting families from homelessness and ensure we have a more sustainable housing system in future for those on low incomes and those in the squeezed middle who can no longer afford spiralling rents.

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