James Bannon (Fine Gael)

The amendment proposes to insert a new section. I am concerned that the failure of the Bill to address the question of licences will result in landlords increasingly using licences as a means of defeating the accrual of tenants' rights, which would otherwise arise from the operation of tenancy under the legislation. In the same way as the courts can lift a veil on a corporation or company, I am proposing the inclusion of this section to empower the board to lift the veil on a licensing order to determine whether it is being used as a device. This short section would add substance to the Bill and I appeal to the Minister of State to accept it.