John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)

That is stated very clearly in the legislation. It is dealt with in section 11, on data sharing and exchange, and is clear.

I must disagree with some of the comments made by Senator Coffey. I tried to be as clear as I could and we tried to offer clarity. The Senator raised the issue of the granny flat and I stated very clearly in my reply that it would not be liable for the charge if it is part of the dwelling in question.

I return to the other questions. Senator Ormonde raised a similar issue and I draw attention to section 2(2) of the legislation which states:

For the purpose of this Act, a bedroom forming part of a residential property that is let under a letting arrangement whereby the individual occupying that bedroom is entitled to share with any other individual any other accommodation, amenity or facility in the property, is not a residential property but the building of which it is a part, is.

That section deals with a situation in which a number of people are in a place together in separate rooms. However, if there are separate apartments, clearly those apartments are subject to the charge and again, that is very clear.

I appreciate that Senators have raised legitimate points. I wish to examine all of them and as we go through the various stages of the Bill, I shall continue to do so.

I forgot the issues raised by Senator Walsh. He raised a number of points about leasing arrangements. If a property is being leased it is subject to this charge and there is no question about that. Regardless of whether the arrangement is what the Senator referred to as a long-term lease or, as in some cases, a short-term lease, the property is still subject to this €200 charge.