Patrick Costello (Dublin South Central, Green Party)
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448. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the current levels of staffing in the Residential Tenancies Board; the current number of vacant positions; and the total target workforce. [29862/24]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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The Residential Tenancies Board, or RTB, was established as a quasi-judicial independent statutory body under the Residential Tenancies Acts 2004-2022 to regulate the rental sector; provide information to tenants and landlords; maintain a national register of tenancies; resolve disputes between tenants and landlords; and conduct research and provide information to inform policy.

The remit of the Board covers the private rental sector, the not-for-profit housing providers commonly known as Approved Housing Bodies and Student-specific Accommodation providers. The day-to-day operations of the RTB are a matter for the Board.

Following recommendations in the RTB Workforce Plan (2018 – 2021) and engagement with the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform (DPER), the RTB received sanction for significant additional staff over the past three years. The RTB has a sanctioned staffing compliment of 124. It currently is carrying 18 vacancies, which the RTB is actively recruiting to fill.

The RTB is also supported by a third party outsourced service provider who carries out the RTB’s call centre, document management and data entry functions. This contract gives the RTB the flexibility to increase resources as and when required. My Department will continue to work with the RTB to ensure it is sufficiently resourced to deliver on its expanded mandate, including any specific requests, and to support the RTB in reducing response times for people seeking their services.