Edward Timmins (Wicklow, Fine Gael)

I welcome the extension of rent pressure zones to all parts of the country. By any measure, this Government and the previous one have done many things to protect renters.

I want to blow away the myth that tenants are not protected in this country. I have experience of other European countries. These are often cited as being much more favourable to tenants. This is often not the case. In Germany, for example, if tenants do not pay their rent for two months in a row, landlords can quickly get a court order to evict them. This is quickly followed by a bailiff coming to evict. That is not the case in this country. Similarly, no-fault evictions apply in Germany if landlords wish to use the property for themselves or their families. This Bill protects tenants and that protection also takes effect the day after its enactment.

However, the best way to protect tenants is to have an increased supply. We can bring in all the rules in the world, but if there is a shortage of houses, those rules have limited impact. They can also often have unintended consequences. For example, many landlords have left the market in the past few years because of more and more regulation. The challenge in this country arose because of a successful economy that has delivered 100,000 additional jobs per annum along with the resulting increase in population. Jobs and population increases happen much more quickly than house building. A tap cannot be switched on for house building. It occurs on a longer timescale than increases in demand and, equally, it can quickly fall away.

The Government continues to make many changes that will speed up house building. To give an international context to this, many countries have severe challenges with house and apartment building. For example, China had a massive oversupply until a year ago, with 60 million empty units at one stage. On the other hand, Germany has a housing shortage, like us, and had a target of 400,000 units for 2024, but only completed approximately 230,000. That is equivalent to Ireland having a target of 25,000 and building 14,000 because Germany's population is 16 times bigger. We need to put our situation in context.

I have yet to see a convincing policy from the Opposition that would make a difference in housing delivery. The solution to housing supply is not a few particular elements. It is a combination of a huge number of things. Recent proposals from the Government are just one part of the solution. We must continue to bring more changes to maintain this momentum. For example, the cost of building a home is too high. We must look at moves to reduce this cost. In many parts of the country, the cost of building a home exceeds the market price so no one will build. Hence, no new house building is taking place, yet there is demand for housing in these areas. This is a clear example of where Government intervention would help, for example, by reintroducing a waiver for development levies. This worked well in the past and can be the difference between a builder deciding to build or not. Alternatively, we could consider a temporary reduction in VAT to kick-start building. A special focus on affordable housing is also needed to allow it to be expanded. Finally, the main focus must be on all the State agencies and local authorities working closely together to solve this big problem.

See this speech in context