Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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62. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if he intends introducing an incentive for persons who are council tenants and could afford to build or buy their own house, to do so; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [55862/22]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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I am confident the funding and targeted schemes committed to under Housing for All will deliver a greater supply of homes and increase access to purchasing affordable homes for all who aspire to do so, including local authority tenants.

Government has committed a record €4 billion current and capital funding in Budget 2022 to help increase homeownership. This investment, a 20% increase on 2021, includes:

- €75 million to help deliver 750 Cost Rental homes (and a further 830 supplied by the Land Development Agency),

- €55 million to deliver 500 Affordable Purchase homes (for first-time buyers), and

- €250 million for lending under the enhanced Local Authority Home Loan (for first-time buyers).

The investment will also support an extension of the Help-to-Buy scheme and introduction of the First Home scheme.

The Croí Cónaithe (Towns) Fund is a new initiative which underpins the policy objectives set out in Pathway Four of Housing for All. Schemes under the Fund, which are delivered by local authorities, provide new choices for people to live in towns and villages in Ireland, through the provision of a grant to support the refurbishment of vacant properties and by providing serviced sites (the “Ready to Build Scheme”) in towns and villages for people to build their own homes.

Finally, the Tenant Purchase Scheme is also open to local authority tenants to buy houses available for sale under the scheme, subject to meeting certain eligibility and scheme criteria.

Peter Fitzpatrick (Louth, Independent)
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63. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if the proposed ban on evictions during the winter period covers the rent-a-room scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [55896/22]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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The Residential Tenancies Acts 2004-2022 regulate the landlord-tenant relationship in the private rented sector and set out the rights and obligations of landlords and tenants. The Acts apply to every dwelling that is the subject of a tenancy, subject to a limited number of exceptions.

Section 3(2)(g) provides that the Acts do not apply to a dwelling within which the landlord also resides.

The Residential Tenancies (Deferment of Termination Dates of Certain Tenancies) Act 2022 was signed into law on 29 October 2022 and relates to tenancy agreements (and licensee agreements between students and providers of student specific accommodation) that fall within the remit of the Residential Tenancies Acts 2004-2022. Accordingly, the 2022 Act does not apply to a dwelling within which the landlord resides and in respect of which he or she avails of the rent-a-room scheme.