Barry Cowen (Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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133. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government the assessment his Department has carried out on the impact of Airbnb dwelling usage on the rental market; his plans to regulate Airbnb dwellings; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31446/16]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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In publishing Rebuilding Ireland Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness, the Government has set out a practical and readily implementable set of actions to create a functioning and sustainable housing system. The Plan is available at the website . The Plan is divided into five pillars, with each targeting a specific area of the housing system for attention.

Pillar 4 of the Plan, which deals with the Rental Sector, commits to developing a comprehensive strategy for the sector in Q4 2016. The strategy will be structured around 4 key areas: security, standards, supply and services. In terms of supply, the strategy will focus on maintaining existing levels of rental stock and encouraging investment in additional supply. All the main issues that affect the availability of dwellings in the rental market will be considered during the development of the strategy, which will be informed by a public consultation process now getting underway whereby all interested parties and stakeholders may make submissions.

The overarching objective of the strategy will be to increase supply and support the development of a stable, strong and viable rental sector offering true choice for households, investment opportunities for providers and reflecting the rights and responsibilities of tenants and landlords.

In the context of the recent determination by An Bord Pleanala in relation to the exclusive use of an apartment as a commercial letting through airbnb, I have asked my Department to examine the decision, which is of course primarily a matter for planning authorities to determine, and consider the appropriate steps, including the provision of statutory planning guidelines, to provide clarity and consistency of approach by all planning authorities in terms of planning requirements for such commercial lettings.