Aideen Hayden (Labour) | Oireachtas source

Would it be possible to have a debate on the wider housing market, particularly investment properties? I noted the Governor of the Central Bank's recent comments, where he advocated wholesale repossession of buy-to-let properties. We all know there are significant levels of mortgage arrears on buy-to-let properties and I have publicly stated that it is unfair the non-principal private residence tax should be levied on landlords for a full year, along with the new residential property tax for the other half of the year.

The most recent reports from daft.ie show that rents are rising, particularly in urban areas, by up to 6%. We know from the evidence of organisations working in the field that people in receipt of rent supplement are digging into their social welfare benefits to pay these increased rents and we have serious issue with the payment of rent supplement, which is not keeping up with rents that are being demanded. This the opposite of upward-only rent reviews, in that every successive Minister, including the current Minister, has come in and dropped the rate of support for tenants. This is an important aspect of the housing market and requires a more holistic approach than looking to the Department of Finance or the Department of Social Protection. We stand at a crossroads in the housing market, particularly the buy-to-let market. We must give this some serious attention.