Fintan Warfield (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The six-month ban on evictions would see us through the cold winter months and, hopefully, through much of the Covid pandemic. Many countries, such as France, have had wintertime bans on evictions for years. As I said in my speech, we urgently need time and space to sort out the private rental market. The Simon Community stressed this measure will give time to get beyond flu season, increase contract tracing and for non-governmental organisations, NGOs, local authorities, the HSE and the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage to continue to work to reduce the number of people in emergency accommodation.

I assure Senators that Sinn Féin, if Senators agree to this measure, will work with them to provide a long-lasting solution to the rental crisis. This six-month period would allow all parties to contribute and the time-pressure of the pandemic would not hamper those efforts.