Joe Carey (Clare, Fine Gael)
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269. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government to suspend the requirement on landlords to retrofit ventilation systems into old houses which have never had them to qualify for HAP, in light of the national housing rental shortage; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14368/16]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Minimum standards for rental accommodation are prescribed in the Housing (Standards for Rented Houses) Regulations 2008, as amended by the Housing (Standards for Rented Houses) (Amendment) Regulations 2009, made under section 18 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1992.

The Regulations specify requirements in relation to a range of matters, such as structural repair, sanitary facilities, heating, ventilation, natural light and safety of gas and electrical supply.With very limited exemptions, these regulations apply to local authority and voluntary housing units as well as private rented residential accommodation.

Article 9 of the 2008 regulations requires that: every room used, or intended for use, by the tenant as a habitable room requires adequate ventilation; all means of ventilation is maintained in good repair and working order; and adequate ventilation is provided for the removal of water vapour from kitchens and bathrooms.

All landlords have a legal obligation to ensure that their rented properties comply with these regulations and responsibility for the enforcement of the regulations rests with the relevant local authority supported by a dedicated stream of funding provided from part of the proceeds of tenancy registration fees collected by the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB).

In order for a dwelling to be supported under the Housing Assistance Payment, the housing authority must be satisfied on inspection that the dwelling complies with the standards for rented accommodation.

The improvement in basic standards of living for those in rented accommodation brought about by the 2008 Regulations has been a success. As a result of the regulations, many tenants are now living in safe, healthy homes. I have no plans to amend the Regulations to reduce the standards required.