Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The key to student accommodation is the same as it is for housing: to increase the supply. We must bring on more supply to address the demand. We also have an obligation to try to reduce costs. That is the reason we put a lot of work into the standard design for purpose-built student accommodation, which is similar to the school building programme, for example, whereby there is a standardised design that helps move projects forward more quickly. In that regard, we set up an expert multidisciplinary design team and appointed it to research and develop new design standards for State-supported purpose-built student accommodation. The successful consortium comprised Metropolitan Workshop, KPMG and ORS Consulting. The project will be key to establishing best practice and value for money for the State in ensuring the affordability of additional supply for students and delivering modern, purpose-built student accommodation facilities that are functional and sustainable.

I also briefly mention the existing rent-a-room scheme, where people who offer a room can avail of up to €14,000 tax free, which is a considerable tax concession.

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