Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

That is what is there.

Throughout the course of the debate on the eviction moratorium, protections that exist for renters have been lost and I will take a minute to outline them. We have a €500 tax credit that is worth €1000 in 2023. There is a 2% rent increase cap in rent pressure zones, RPZs. Rents outside RPZs can only be increased every two years. There is an increase in the notice-of-termination periods that are up to 224 days for certain tenancies, which is more than seven months. More than 75,000 HAP and RAS tenancies are in place, which are direct supports for renters which is another scheme Sinn Féin says it would scrap. However, it will not tell those thousands of households what it would do instead. We have strict procedures and requirements for the provision of notice-to-quit termination, which, if ignored, can result in the notice being invalid. The RTB dispute resolution service is available to deal with cases in which a tenant might wish to dispute the validity of a notice of termination. The mediation service is the quickest route for tenants to ensure their tenancy rights are not being breached.

I appeal to Members opposite to stop the politicisation of such an important matter. All of us are aware of the difficult situation with regard to the private rental sector and they know - given the three changes they have made in their position over a few short weeks - that the measures they would bring forward will further shrink that private rental market. Whether they like it or not, as we are increasing the supply of social homes - which is indisputable - of affordable homes for the first time in a generation, through schemes they have also opposed, by continuing their demonisation of the private rental sector, they will continue to drive more and more landlords out of the market-----

See this speech in context