Residential Tenancies and Valuation Bill 2020: Second Stage
Seanad Éireann — 2020-07-31
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Alice-Mary Higgins (IND), National University of Ireland

I welcome the Minister of State and thank him for coming to the House. It is his first visit in his new capacity. We have learned a good deal. Much of what was said for many years became more clear during the Covid-19 crisis. Issues highlighted and points made by parties in opposition were reinforced. Some of those parties that are now in government should be very aware of that because they were present for those debates. I will take three or four of the lessons learned, because this is very important. We need a change in the way we deal with housing. It is not a mystery that needs to be solved. It is not something for which we need a new guru. For years, very clear messages have been coming from local authority councillors, activists, Threshold, housing agencies and the Opposition benches.
Airbnb is a problem. We saw that in the sudden increase in new properties available to rent during the pandemic. It told us just how much had been taken out. It also showed us why there was a real problem - resources were not allocated to track down Airbnb where it had been operating. It should not take the fact that the customer disappears for this effectively black market in short-term renting to be flushed out and become evident. It needs to be followed up now in that those who were acting inappropriately outside of proper legal permission before this crisis would be investigated.
Co-living is a disastrous idea which gives rise to massive health risks. I say this sadly because I believe there are versions of co-living which could be positive. I lived in shared accommodation in other parts of the world where it was done properly but the idea of co-living in the dormitory-style atmosphere being put forward is a serious issue. We know of cases internationally whereby apartment buildings have become the source for clusters of Covid-19 because people share stairs and elevators. We will see that happen much more when all those people are sharing a kitchen and the basic facilities.
We know that green space matters but a false tension is often created to the effect that it is only the green space that we can use for public housing because we could never interfere with commercial housing. We have had big empty commercial office blocks all around the country, many of which were never rented because their main benefit was the tax benefit they provided to those who invested in them. We know work practices will change. They need to change. Green spaces matter for people who live in cities. They are part of making our inner cities livable. We know that when we hollow out city centres as spaces where diverse communities can live it is bad for businesses also. There is a reason some businesses in the suburbs kept going while those in the city centres died. It is because the latter relied only on office workers who came in occasionally. They did not have the organic connection with the fabric of a vibrant, multi-use, multi-function, things happening together community that many communities within Dublin close to the city centre still have. However, those communities are hanging on by the skin of their teeth in that regard.
We also know, and these were points made eloquently by Senator Fitzpatrick, that local authorities are very important. There is a problem when we have an over-reliance on private landlords. That has been said maybe 5,000 times. It is a problem and it is also a choice. Our local authorities, as was said, were set up literally as local housing agencies. There is no reason the local authorities should not be providing the land. They should be positive landlords who can understand, adjust rent and balance the needs of communities and where people can plan. How many families that grew up in local authority housing increased their rent as their family circumstances improved and their children could go to the same school for six years? I refer to what that means for that next generation's opportunities.
Senator Fitzpatrick mentioned that the Dublin local authority was able to purchase houses. There was an explicit ban on other local authorities doing that. In certain parts of the country, they were banned from buying houses. Effectively, they paid the same amount for a ten-year lease on a house that they could have bought for, say, €5,000 more.
Now, when the market picks up, families that may be living in that, where their children may be located locally, may find themselves pushed out. I urge the Minister of State not to make that mistake again. Build or buy but do not lease. Do not store up a new problem for five or 10 years' time.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2020-07-31/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:48:31+00:00
Sitting date: 2020-07-31