Mark Daly (Fianna Fail)
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I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Christopher O'Sullivan, to the House. He is most welcome to Seanad Éireann.

Teresa Costello (Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister of State for being here and taking this matter. This issue concerns the need for the Department of housing to set out what mechanisms are available to local authorities and approved housing bodies, AHBs, when dealing with repeated breaches of tenancy, particularly concerning antisocial behaviour that affects neighbouring tenants. Across the State, but noticeably in areas that I represent, tenants are reporting ongoing issues of antisocial behaviour. These are not isolated instances but repeated patterns that undermine community safety and the right of residents to live in peace. The tools to deal with antisocial behaviour exist in legislation. Under the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2014, local authorities and AHBs can issue tenancy warnings, seek possession orders where breaches continue and apply for excluding orders that can remove offenders. While these are significant powers, it is not clear how consistently they are used, how effective they are and what oversight is in place across both local authorities and AHBs.

In my constituency, South Dublin County Council operates a detailed antisocial behaviour strategy. It sets out prevention, mediation and enforcement. The council has systems for complaints, timelines for investigation, multiagency co-operation and the option to apply for excluding orders. Yet, the volume of complaints remains high. In the past three years, South Dublin County Council has received almost 2,000 complaints related to council-owned properties. While some cases progress to warnings and termination, the reality on the ground is that many tenants live beside persistent antisocial behaviour for prolonged periods.

Approved housing bodies now house thousands of families across the country and are subject to the AHB regulatory authority. They also have the power to seek excluding orders and to enforce tenancy conditions. However, there is little transparency around how often these powers are used, how complaints are handled and what level of consistency exists between AHBs. Tenants housed through an AHB should not have weaker protections, nor should AHBs be operating without proper scrutiny when dealing with recurring breaches. Tenants are doing everything right yet are living with the consequences of repeated antisocial behaviour from others. They are reporting it and engaging with the process. What they see in return is a system that is slow, inconsistent and often unclear. For many, the process feels endless while their day-to-day quality of life deteriorates.

I ask the Minister of State to outline the mechanisms that are available to local authorities and AHBs and crucially, how the Department monitors the use of those mechanisms. What guidance or direction is issued to AHBs to ensure that their approaches are aligned with local authorities and the expectations of the Department? It is not enough to have legal powers on paper; we need data. How many tenancy warnings are issued? How many lead to excluding orders? How many lead to full repossession? I call on the Department to commit to publishing annual disaggregated data on antisocial behaviour inventions by local authorities and AHBs, and to review whether the strongest powers like excluding orders are being used to protect communities. Every tenant deserves to feel safe in their home. The law provides tools to protect them. What we need now is clarity, consistency and oversight so that these tools are used when tenancy breaches become a pattern that harms others.

Christopher O'Sullivan (Cork South-West, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Senator very much for raising this issue. It has been my experience that the vast majority of tenants, such as social housing tenants or tenants of AHBs, are exemplary. They are model tenants. That certainly seems to be the experience. In a small number of situations, there are tenants who may partake in antisocial behaviour. We have to admit that we have scenarios where they make their neighbours' lives hell. It is very difficult. It is apparent that some local authorities are better than others at dealing with that and using the powers that are available.

I will outline the legislation and the tools that are available to local authorities to deal with these situations. My colleague, the Minister for justice, has overall responsibility for policy and legislation relating to serious incidents of antisocial behaviour through the criminal code, which is enforced by An Garda Síochána. My Department also has a key role to play in this by providing a framework of legislation giving social housing landlords a range of tools to tackle antisocial behaviour being perpetrated by their tenants. Local authorities are responsible under the housing Acts for the management and maintenance of their housing stock and the management of their estates, including taking appropriate measures to counter antisocial behaviour. The Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1997 provides for the issuing of court orders to exclude a household member engaged in antisocial behaviour from the dwelling and, if appropriate, the estate in question. The Senator has already mentioned this power. The 1997 Act also empowers a housing authority to refuse to allocate or sell a dwelling to a person engaged in antisocial behaviour. The powers of local authorities in this area were significantly enhanced by Part 2 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2014, which provides for the issuing of a tenancy warning requiring that tenants cease any antisocial activity. Part 2 of the 2014 Act also gives local authorities the power to recover possession of their dwellings from households in serious breach of their tenancy agreements, including engaging in antisocial behaviour.

In the AHB sector, the Residential Tenancies Acts regulate the relationship between AHB landlords and their social tenants and set out the tenancy rights and obligations for both parties. AHBs are responsible for enforcing the obligations that apply to their tenants under the Residential Tenancies Acts. Where a tenant is engaged in antisocial behaviour or allowing others to engage in such behaviour, the Residential Tenancies Acts allow an AHB to terminate the tenancy, subject to a notice period of seven days in the case of serious antisocial behaviour or 28 days in the case of less serious but persistent behaviour.The Residential Tenancies Act also provides that a third party affected by antisocial behaviour may take a case to the RTB against an AHB which has failed to enforce its tenant’s obligation not to engage in antisocial behaviour. The forthcoming residential tenancies (amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2025 will broaden the type of evidence of antisocial behaviour that the RTB can consider in its dispute resolution service.

My answer sets out the tools that are available and the legal status in relation to AHBs and social housing. It is important to say as well that it is not just in social housing situations where we see this type of antisocial behaviour where tenants or residents of a house are causing issues within estates. It does happen. Thankfully, I still think it is the minority but, obviously, if it is persistent, especially in certain areas like the Senator highlighted in south County Dublin, then it is something we need to address. I have set out the legislation and policy. In fairness, the Senator also asked for the reporting mechanism. I think that is very fair to ask for how we monitor the implementation of these rules. That is absolutely something we will look into.

Teresa Costello (Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister of State very much for that. I commend South Dublin County Council. I know it is the minority, and it spans far wider than the local authority housing. Obviously, the Department would have the figures for the local authority housing and that is why I framed it in that manner. On antisocial behaviour, one of the most common complaints I hear that really distresses people is the illegal dumping and burning of rubbish within estates. I have had situations in apartment complexes where instead of going to the bins, people are repeatedly throwing rubbish in the corridors. I am dealing with residents and tenants who are absolutely distraught. It is an ongoing issue. I would like to see action on that and an end to it because people are really distressed about this. As we said, it spans beyond the local authority, but I would have thought the Department would have had the figures. That is why the Commencement matter was related to that.

Christopher O'Sullivan (Cork South-West, Fianna Fail)
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That is absolutely fair enough. That is a fair ask to be able to provide data. It is about protecting people's and individuals' privacy, etc., but we could provide data so that we can monitor the level, identify the areas where it is more prominent and see what action is being taken to stop it. I know that in some instances there are high levels of intimidation. I imagine it is not easy for council housing staff to get in there and address those issues when there is that level of intimidation that sometimes exists. Maybe they need to be supported and enabled more in addressing it. We all know the situations where the actions of one ruin it for the majority of really peaceful law-abiding citizens, but that is something at which we need to look. The Senator's question specifically in relation to monitoring is very fair, and we will look into that. Then, perhaps we can try to enable local authorities and AHBs to be able to address it and not step back, which is often the case.