Michael McNamara (Clare, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Lots of legislation contains no provision to extend it. The Minister could bring in an amendment Act through the Houses even faster than this was brought through. There was a lot of talk about this for two weeks and then we are going through all Stages in a couple of hours, so the Minister could bring through amending legislation as well in a couple of hours. I do not buy that argument.

It is important that people are not disincentivised to rent out their home if they need to move home. That is what this does, in my view. It is also not a provision that is of any benefit, that you can serve notice on somebody. I appreciate it might be tightened up to cover people with a huge portfolio of five, 20 or 30 five homes which they buy as an investment fund. It certainly does not apply to the international funds because they do not have a family member that will need the home and they will not need it for their own use. If they argue they can avail of that, then it could be tightened.

In circumstances where somebody has left another country to come back to Ireland, is looking forward to moving into their home or has a family member who is returning from another country and they have told them they will move into a home owned by the family on such a date, the Minister is now telling them they cannot. I question whether he will be able to get that through the courts. It will take much longer than six months to get it through the courts, and that might well be what the Minister is banking on. Regardless of what happens with the courts, the Minister is disincentivising people from renting out their home in future in circumstances where they are an accidental landlord. I ask him to look at the legislation and amendment in that context.

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