Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

On that point, we must do the catch-up and provide purpose-built, affordable, student accommodation on university lands. By the way, the idea of state aid rules kicking in is slightly worrying when it comes to public universities. These are public universities and public goods, but I will leave that aside. The vast majority of students are still prey to what is going on in the wider private rental market. Many of them are licensees living in digs and so on. One of the things UCD students' union again said this morning is we need some minimum protections for people in licensee arrangements who are facing short notice evictions and all sorts of things, and who have no rights and protections whatsoever. The students' union representatives also asked to meet not just the Minister but the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy O'Brien, given that many students are affected by that wider rental accommodation and housing crisis, to address the issues students are facing.

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