Violet-Anne Wynne (Clare, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to speak about renters' rights and acknowledge that Shannon LEA is only now the second area in my constituency, Clare, to become a rent pressure zone, following Ennis LEA in just August of this year. Some, including those in the Government, might say better late than never, but the significant delay for Clare has had detrimental effects for those renters who have fallen victim to highly escalated levels of rent and, in some of the cases I have seen, substandard properties in return. The most recent daft.iereport tells us rents in Clare increased by 13.9% between October last year and this year, and according to Clare FM, this is the first time that average rents in Clare have surpassed €1,300 a month, another record broken for the Government. A two-bedroom apartment will now set you back at least €1,030, which is a whopping increase of 15.3% in just one year. It is out of control.

What do you get for that €1,030? Not security of tenure or a Government scheme to protect your deposit; in fact, I often hear from people who did not get their deposit back and have had to get loans to move into a new tenancy, with even higher rents than in existing tenancies. The lack of available properties was a crisis and is now a colossal gap leaving many locked into emergency accommodation for long periods, with others sitting in absolute fear because they do not know what is to become of them and their families. As the Minister of State will know, nine out of ten tenancy terminations are landlord led, while seven out of ten are no-fault evictions. In the third quarter of this year, 60 notices to quit were issued in Clare.

Drastic steps need to be taken to help people out of drastic circumstances. Bringing forward legislation that will ban no-fault evictions outright for at least a period of 12 months would be significant. Shelter is a human right on which many other human rights hinge and, as we know, you cannot meaningfully contribute and partake in society without it. If we fail to provide for this fundamental right, we will fail the people who put us here.

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