Sandra McLellan (Cork East, Sinn Fein)
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Question 11: To ask the Minister for the Environment; Community and Local Government his plans to improve private rental tenants awareness of their rights. [37754/11]

Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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The Residential Tenancies Act 2004 sets out the rights and obligations of landlords and tenants in the private rented residential sector. The Act applies to every dwelling that is the subject of a tenancy, subject to a limited number of exceptions which are set out in section 3(2) of the Act. The Private Residential Tenancies Board, PRTB, was established under the Act to operate a national tenancy registration system and resolve disputes between landlords and tenants in the private rented residential sector.

My Department conducted a review of the Act in 2009 with a specific emphasis on whether it best supports the PRTB's key functions and whether legislative amendments would support either the achievement of additional operational efficiencies by the PRTB in the delivery of those functions or the broader good working of the private rented sector. The outcomes of the review were announced in April 2010 and the Government has approved the preparation of legislation to deliver on the review's recommendations. Lack of awareness among tenants of their rights did not arise as an issue in the course of the review. The PRTB and other stakeholder organisations play an important role in informing parties to tenancies of their rights. The PRTB's website, www.prtb.ie, is an important resource in this regard.

Dessie Ellis (Dublin North West, Sinn Fein)
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The private rental sector is a significant part of the housing market and is growing as a result of a lack of demand for home purchasing. Tenants need to be informed of their rights and what agencies are available to assist them in resolving problems should disputes arise with landlords. Threshold and other voluntary groups are inundated with queries on basic tenants' rights. Problems such as the return of deposits, which should be easily resolved, are taking up a great deal of time.

The Minister suggested previously that compulsory registration of landlords would be introduced. There is a serious discrepancy in this regard because many landlords are not registered. Where they are registered, voluntary organisations and others are able to contact them to forward complaints and have issues addressed. This is not the case, however, where landlords are not registered. Will the Minister outline how he proposes to deal with unregistered landlords?

Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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As I indicated, the heads of a Bill have been approved by the Government and I hope to have legislation in place to address some of the issues raised by 2012. Tenants' rights are outlined in the Residential Tenancies Act 2004. The legislation provides that rented accommodation must be in good condition and sets out what the term "good condition" means. Tenants must also have privacy. The various rights provided in the Bill are available on the website of the Private Residential Tenancies Board.

I concur with the Deputy that Threshold and other voluntary groups are playing an important role in supporting the information flow required by students and others who may be vulnerable to the actions of unscrupulous landlords in some of these matters. I assure him that the issue of compulsory registration is being actively considered in the context of forthcoming legislation.