Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator and the Cathaoirleach for their kind comments. I thank the Senator for raising this matter and I apologise that the Minister, Deputy Catherine Martin, is not available. She asked me to take this matter.

The Government approved the priority drafting of the registration of short-term tourist letting Bill and publication of the general scheme of the Bill in December. It provides for the registration of short-term tourist lettings with Fáilte Ireland in line with the commitment under Housing for All, the Government's housing policy. The Minister has since written to the Chair of the Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport and Media, of which the Senator Malcolm is a member, in line with agreed protocols for pre-legislative scrutiny of legislation. This afternoon, departmental officials, along with officials from the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and Fáilte Ireland, will attend a meeting of the committee in public session for pre-legislative scrutiny of the general scheme. Many of the issues the Senator has raised can be fleshed out in more detail with the officials.The Department is also engaging with the European Commission on the draft legislation under the notification requirements of the technical regulations information system directive.

The main provisions of the Bill are the establishment of a short-term tourist letting register, the provision that any party offering accommodation for periods of up to and including 21 nights will need to be registered with Fáilte Ireland and an obligation on those advertising properties for short-term letting to ensure that they have valid registration numbers. The Bill also provides for enforcement of the proposed regulations.

The rapid growth of short-term tourist letting is a worldwide trend. In the international context, it is notable that on 7 November last, the European Commission adopted a proposal for a regulation to enhance transparency in the field of short-term accommodation rentals and help public authorities ensure that the balanced development of this sector as part of a sustainable wider tourism sector. The Commission stated that while short-term accommodation bookings offer benefits for hosts and tourists, they can, of course, create concerns for local communities struggling, for example, with a lack of affordable housing. Our Department's statement of strategy includes the goal of supporting the recovery and economic growth of a competitive tourism sector that is environmentally, economically and socially sustainable. The Government's housing policy, Housing for All, includes the objective of making more efficient use of existing housing. One of the actions to achieve this is the development of new regulatory controls requiring short-term and holiday lets to register with Fáilte Ireland with a view to ensuring houses are used to best effect in areas of housing need, including in the Senator's constituency.

Using data derived from screen-scraping, which is the only source of data available in the absence of the register, which we propose to establish, Fáilte Ireland estimates that approximately 30,000 short-term tourist letting properties in the State are currently advertised online. It is impossible to forecast with any certainty at this stage but it is estimated that of the 30,000 relevant properties, up to 12,000 properties may become available for long-term housing requirements. The Senator can discuss that in more detail with the officials this afternoon.

While the loss of properties from the short-term letting sector will impact on the availability of tourism accommodation, it is important that growth in tourism is sustainable and does not impact adversely on host communities. The establishment of the register will help the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and local authorities in ensuring proper planning and sustainable development. From a tourism perspective, the proposed legislation will for the first time allow Fáilte Ireland to have a full picture of tourist accommodation across the State, significantly enhancing its ability to promote and drive tourism investment. The Bill will be examined further during the drafting process. In that context, what the Senator and other members of the committee are saying, the proposed EU regulation the Digital Services Act, which came into force in November, will be taken into account.

With regard to resourcing of this initiative, I understand that Fáilte Ireland has appointed a dedicated team of ten staff to establish, maintain and implement the proposed short-term tourist letting register. This team is helped by other teams across Fáilte Ireland, including those with responsibility in the areas of legal, ICT and finance. Preparations are being made for the launch of the register, including the establishment of systems and procedures to maintain it and stakeholder engagements.