Gerry Horkan (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Threshold's annual report was launched this morning in the presence of the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government, Deputy Eoghan Murphy, and the chairperson of the agency, the former Senator, Aideen Hayden. The report highlights a significant increase in the number of tenants being unfairly evicted and there has been an 18% rise in calls from renters who have been told their tenancies are coming to an end. Some 32% of the calls to the charity last year were from tenants faced with losing their homes. Last year, Threshold received 73,526 calls, a staggering figure. It also outlined that in Dublin rents are up 10% this year, despite the rent pressure zone limit of 4%. It is very clear that these rent pressure zones are not working. At this launch Threshold called on the Government to admit that rent pressure zones are not working and to introduce a transparent rent register so that people can see rents from one tenancy to the next, what rent was being paid for the property they are going into and any increases being applied.

The British Government has had to publish the full legal text it received on Brexit and we await that.Yesterday, a five-day debate on Brexit commenced at Westminster. The British Prime Minister, Theresa May, told the House of Commons that another deal would not miraculously appear if this one does not go to plan. Remainers have welcomed the opinion of the legal adviser to the European Court of Justice that the UK could abandon Article 50 unilaterally and does not need the agreement of the rest of the EU to do so. The British can revoke Article 50 if they so choose and that is something that many of us hope they will consider. We could then think of the past two years as a bad dream. Either way, we must make sure that, from our perspective, Brexit is the least worst option. We are all united on that for the sake of the peace process, the health of our economy and everything else.

I draw the attention of Members to the fact that the chairman of the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council, IFAC, Mr. Seamus Coffey will address the Committee on Budgetary Oversight later today. He has said that the forecasts for economic growth will move beyond potential for 2019 and that overheating will emerge in later years. He is also warning that predicting the Irish economy's performance will be very difficult and that the long-term spending plans of the Minister for Finance, Deputy Donohoe, "lack credibility and look unrealistic". I call on the Deputy Leader to invite the Minister for Finance to the House to discuss and thoroughly examine the latest report from IFAC. While I believe the Minister is doing a good job, it must be acknowledged that he has been lucky that interest rates have been so low in the context of repaying the national debt. At the same time, somewhat miraculously, billions in corporation tax receipts have been appearing out of nowhere. We will take in approximately €9.4 billion in corporation tax this year, compared with only €4 billion or €5 billion five or six years ago. While these additional funds are very welcome, they are unpredictable and I would like a debate on the long-term sustainability of our public finances.