Frances Black (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State. I have to talk about the eviction ban today. The end of the eviction ban and the broader housing crisis is the central issue in Irish life right now. Most of the debate around it has been confined to the Dáil so I am glad that Members of the Seanad have this opportunity. We are very appreciative of that and I thank the Deputy Leader, Senator Regina Doherty, for organising this debate.

We must ask whether a tenant should be no-fault evicted into homelessness during a period of complete dysfunction in the housing market. We have to ask whether the property rights of the haves matter more than the safety and dignity of the have-nots. This Government has made its position very clear. People are frightened out of their wits. The failures of successive Governments that have treated housing as a commodity and as an investment vehicle rather than as a human right and essential public infrastructure have compounded it to bring us to this point.

We have hard data from the Residential Tenancies Board showing that 3,500 notices to quit were issued during the moratorium period and will be kicking in over the next few months. That is at least 3,500 people who will most likely lose their homes and, alongside that, we know the emergency accommodation system is under massive strain. Figures given privately to the Cabinet late last year show that emergency accommodation around the State was at capacity and this was a major rationale for the moratorium. Nothing substantial has changed in the interim.

I believe the Government is simply caving in to the demands of the landlord lobby. We are often told landlords are selling up because the rental market is stacked against them. Some 60% of notices to quit issued over the moratorium cited landlords selling up as the reason for the notice. We have heard that 43,000 rental homes were sold up in the past five years. The Government claims this is evidence of a hostile environment for landlords when nothing could be further from the truth. It is unsurprising that landlords are selling their properties in recent years, given the huge house price growth over the past decade. Many of these owners are selling up because it makes financial sense to do so.

The Daft.ie rent reports constantly show that the average yield on many types of rental properties in the State hovers at around 10% and, at worst, the average return is no lower than 5%. These are substantial returns. Imagine getting 5% to 10% in interest every year on your savings in the bank. Rents have doubled in the last decade, meaning that even landlords with big mortgages are making bumper returns as their rental income far exceeds their outgoings. How can we be expected to believe that, in these conditions, landlords are struggling?

We have to ask whether there is any hard evidence on the number of landlords who are supposedly struggling in the current environment. All of the available figures suggest they are enjoying healthy profits, so we have to face that reality. Accidental landlords, small landlords, struggling landlords - these spectral figures are constantly invoked by the Government as a justification for lax protections for renters but the Government cannot present evidence around any of them. I think it is all rhetoric and spin, to be honest.

The worst thing that can happen to a landlord if the moratorium is retained is that they continue to receive significant rental income, which either goes to them directly as income or is used to pay off their loans on a valuable asset. The worst thing that can happen to a renter if the moratorium is ended is that their entire life and their children's lives will crumble around them. These situations are not equal and it is a profound shame that this Government has tried to suggest that they are.

This is a heartless decision from the Government. People have nowhere to go. People are terrified. It is a really scary time. I am sure many Members of the House are getting letters asking what people are going to do.I would say to anyone who is watching this and who is facing eviction into homelessness that they should know that there are people they can turn to for help. I want them to know that today. They should get in touch with organisations like Threshold, the housing NGO, and their local Government representatives. They should contact them and tell them how bad it is and how scared they are. They can advise them. Many eviction notices are invalid and can be challenged and it is possible to get more time to find alternative accommodation. They should join the Community Action Tenants Union, CATU, which can provide advice and support. It can feel frightening to stand up for yourself in the face of tactics and legal threats but tenants have rights and they should defend them.