Rebecca Moynihan (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I want to raise the issue that we see in the media today, namely, the living wage technical group said we need a living wage of €12.90, which is €2.70 higher than the current minimum wage. That is an increase of 60 cent on last year and it is mainly caused by the rising cost of rent. It is calculated that people on the minimum wage are spending some 64% of their salary on rent, which is two times what is considered affordable, which is generally about a third of income. This underlines the need for a three-year rent freeze in order to try to make rents more affordable for people who are living on the edge, the working poor who need a rent freeze. The basics of life are increasing, in particular in regard to the right to a home and energy costs.

I would like the Leader to schedule a debate on the issue of a living wage and how that fits into housing costs. I recognise we are having a debate on Housing for All later but we have to focus on the issue of renters, the unaffordability of renting and those people who are on the edges of society and spending such a high proportion of their salary on rent, with no chance of ever owning their own home and no chance of their living costs or their rental costs going down.

On a related matter, I see today that a circular has been issued to local authorities on student accommodation guidelines. A little like the situation with investors, it is to be seen to be doing something without actually doing something. The Government has said that the circular sent to local authorities leaves them in no doubt that student accommodation changes of use should not be done without a compelling reason. The situation where 1,000 students beds in Dublin have been changed over to tourist accommodation also happened under the same guidance because it was contained in the development plans that there should not be a changeover and there should not be over-concentration in certain areas. It needs to be stronger than simple guidance. It is like writing a letter and asking for something to be done without having proper backup in legislative terms or having more compelling guidelines in order to be able to do it. I can still see some local authorities doing that.The rationale in the student accommodation change of use applications that I have objected to in my area included the fact that there was going to be a drop in the number of international students and the providers did not consider dropping their rent in order to be able to attract students. We need a debate on the issue. It is something that has gone under the radar, but given the student accommodation crisis it came into focus last week.