Mick Wallace (Wexford, Independent)
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116. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government the number of whole-time equivalent Residential Tenancies Board minimum rental standards inspectors currently employed in County Wexford. [6454/17]

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.

All landlords have a legal obligation to ensure that their rented properties comply with these regulations. 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).

Under section 159 of the Local Government Act 2001, each Chief Executive is responsible for the staffing and organisational arrangements necessary for carrying out the functions of the local authorities for which he or she is responsible. It is therefore, a matter for each individual Chief Executive to assign staff to specific divisions within their organisation. In general, detailed information on local authority staffing levels is not available in my Department. However, Wexford County Council has indicated to my Department that they currently have 3 staff (1.0 Whole Time Equivalent) dedicated to inspections of rental properties regarding compliance with the regulations.

Since the establishment of the RTB in 2004, over €32 million has been paid to local authorities to assist them in the performance of their functions under the Housing Acts, including the inspection of rented accommodation. Over 185,000 inspections have been carried out in this period. Following the enactment of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009, local authorities have a strengthened legislative framework available to them which provides for the issuing of Improvement Notices and Prohibition Notices, where landlords are in breach of their obligations. Fines for non-compliance with the regulations were also increased; the maximum fine increased from €3,000 to €5,000 and the fine for each day of a continuing offence increased from €250 to €400.

The Government’s Strategy for the Rental Sector, published in December last, sets out a number of actions under standards with the combined aim of improving the quality and management of rental accommodation. Under the standards heading, my Department conducted a review of the existing Regulations in 2016 to bring them into line with modern requirements with a focus on tenant safety including new measures covering heating appliances, carbon monoxide and window safety.

On 27 January, I signed the Housing (Standards for Rented Houses) Regulations 2017 giving effect to the commitment in the Strategy. The regulations come into operation generally on 1 July 2017, replacing the Housing (Standards for Rented Houses) Regulations 2008 and the Housing (Standards for Rented Houses) (Amendment) Regulations 2009.

The Strategy also prioritises strengthening the inspection capacity of Local Authorities to increase the number and frequency of inspections of rental properties. In addition to the updated regulations, procedures for a more efficient, standardised and transparent inspections and enforcement approach across all Local Authority areas will be introduced; and specific ring-fenced funding for inspections will be provided from 2018 onwards, so that by 2021 25% of rental properties will be inspected every year.