Thomas Pringle (Donegal South West, Independent)
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I thank the Ceann Comhairle for allowing this Topical Issue matter to be raised. The reason for it is simple. There is a need to recognise the lack of one and two-bedroom apartments in rural areas and, therefore, the fact that tenants cannot be over-accommodated for the purposes of rent supplement and should not be ordered out of their accommodation for that reason.

There are many problems with the rent allowance system. These are mainly related to the maximum rent limits set and the attendant problems they have generated. There is also a problem with the obligation to be in private rented accommodation for six months before one is entitled to claim rent assistance and the need to be on the local authority housing list. This is especially problematic in rural areas. It has arisen more often in recent months and I imagine the problem applies throughout the country. In our small rural towns and villages there are simply no one or two-bedroom apartments available. Thankfully, we did not have the rampant development that occurred elsewhere during the so-called Celtic tiger years resulting in the building of so many blocks of apartments. However, in small towns such as Ardara, Killibegs and Donegal town in south-west Donegal, people who require rent allowance must apply for and take the available properties.

There have been some notable cases recently. One example involved an elderly lady who had a severe heart condition and who could not enter a premises with stairs. She rented a bungalow. However, the only bungalow available in the area had three bedrooms and she was refused rent allowance because she was over-accommodated. That was a bad decision by the community welfare officers and the Department. Thankfully on appeal the circumstances were accepted and she received her rent allowance. However, the process put that person through considerable delays, nervousness and concern about whether she could afford to live anywhere. Another case involved a single man who had been in a two-bedroom apartment which was put on the market by the landlord, who wanted vacant possession of it. The man discussed the matter with the community welfare officer, who advised him to get another property and indicated that the rent allowance would transfer. The only place available was a three-bedroomed bungalow in the same village, but subsequently, when the community welfare officer visited, the man was told he would have to leave and that he would not qualify for rent allowance for the property because it was too large. The system needs to recognise that in many areas around the country one and two-bedroomed apartments are not available.

The people dependent on rent allowance need a sense of security and need to know that if they find a property to rent, the system will be able to accommodate them. The rigid application of the rules and the law does not work in rural areas. I urge the Minister to inform community welfare services and superintendents that they need to be flexible with the system. People are not looking for accommodation that is too large for them, but availing of the only accommodation available in the area.

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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I thank Deputy Pringle for raising this issue. The purpose of rent supplement is to provide short-term income support to eligible tenants living in private rented accommodation whose means are insufficient to meet their accommodation costs and who do not have accommodation available to them from any other source. The overall aim is to provide short-term assistance and not to act as an alternative to the other social housing schemes operated by the Exchequer. Since 2007, rent supplement spending has increased from €391 million to a provisional outturn of €503 million in 2011. The number of people claiming the allowance increased from just under 60,000 people to over 96,800 at end 2011, a 62% increase.

The Department's staff administering the rent supplement scheme assess each application based on the individual circumstances of the case. The Department must be satisfied that the residence is reasonably suited to the residential and other needs of the claimant. The Department must also be satisfied that the rent payable is reasonable, having regard to the nature, character and location of the residence. Individuals cannot be provided with financial assistance for accommodation that is in excess of their needs. The objective is to ensure that rent supplement is not paid in respect of overly expensive accommodation, having regard to the size of the household and market conditions. It should also be borne in mind that the Department is responsible for renting approximately 40% of rental properties in the country. If we over pay, we drive up rents for workers on low income and students who pay privately for accommodation. Therefore, there is an issue of balance. However, in determining whether a particular property is reasonably suited to the residential and other needs of the claimant, the question of availability of accommodation is taken into consideration. It is accepted that there may be limited availability of apartments and smaller properties in some rural areas.

It is the Department's intention to return the rent supplement scheme to its original purpose of a short-term income support. The Government has effectively two initiatives to deal with long-term reliance on rent supplement, the rental accommodation scheme, RAS, in operation since 2004, and the new housing policy initiative. Both initiatives give the local authorities specific responsibility for meeting the long-term housing needs of people receiving rent supplement. These initiatives will result in a long-term solution for those with a housing need. I am working closely with my colleagues, the Minister, Deputy Phil Hogan, and the Minister of State at the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Jan O'Sullivan, to have responsibility for rent supplement transferred to local authorities as these will have a housing department with the detailed knowledge of availability of and cost of accommodation.

One of the cases mentioned by Deputy Pringle concerned an elderly lady. I put it to the Deputy that if we wish to reform the system, that lady should receive long-term accommodation suitable for somebody of her age and physical condition. That is the objective towards which we should work.

Thomas Pringle (Donegal South West, Independent)
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I thank the Minister for her response. I agree our objective should be a long-term solution for people in these situations. It would be great if we could see a time down the road when that would happen. Unfortunately, housing lists are getting longer, the amount of accommodation available to councils is extremely limited and people remain on the housing lists for extremely long periods. I agree we should be providing social housing and for those who require it, but that is not what is happening. People are dependent on rent allowance and this problem will continue.

I appeal to the Minister to talk to officials and ask them for some flexibility in this regard. They must recognise that the type of accommodation that may be suitable to a person's long-term needs is not available, rather than create problems for people by cutting off the rent allowance and forcing them to move out of accommodation and go through an appeals process. As we mentioned in a previous debate, appeals can take an inordinate length of time. We must use a common sense approach, although I recognise and agree we should work towards the long-term gains. However, in the meantime, many people will be impacted detrimentally due to the current policy.

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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I have met with county managers and the Minister to discuss this issue. Yesterday, at Cabinet, we got the agreement to further the policy of transferring responsibility for the rent allowance to local authorities, keeping the rent allowance scheme as a short-term scheme. However, it seems that the lady and the gentleman about whom the Deputy spoke have a long-term rental requirement and they should get social housing, either through a traditional tenancy, through the rental accommodation scheme or through a housing allocation process towards which we will move. That budget would go to the local authorities. One of the issues with regard to the local authorities is that they want to be sure that they will continue to receive the income. Significant work on moving to a new system has been done by the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government and my Department and the Ministers involved. As mentioned, currently we pay €500 million a year, mostly to private landlords. While that is fine, we need to get good value for money and some long-term security for the kind of people mentioned by the Deputy. I will take into account what Deputy Pringle has said about those cases.