Residential Tenancies and Valuation Bill 2020: Second Stage
Seanad Éireann — 2020-07-31
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Paul Gavan (SF), Labour Panel

That is why we are in the mess we are in at the minute. I want to talk about Limerick, where rents have increased to more than €1,200 for a two-bedroom apartment. There has been double-digit growth in rents. Let us be very clear; this Bill will allow rent increases to commence once again. We in Sinn Féin do not believe rents should be increased right now. I actually believe that if a landlord is getting more than €1,200 for a two-bedroom apartment on the Dock Road in Limerick, that is plenty. Surely to God, before we allow rent increases to begin again we should build in further protections for tenants.
One thing that always amazes me, perhaps because I spent time abroad, is the stumbling block both conservative parties have about giving tenants real security of tenure. The idea that, if a house is put up for sale, the landlord has the right to remove the tenants is fundamentally wrong. In the rest of Europe, tenants have a right to stay in those buildings. What is wrong with Irish tenants? What is wrong with the conservative mindset of both Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael that they will never make that move?
It is interesting that, when it was in opposition, Fianna Fáil backed a motion in the Dáil which would change this provision. That reminds me of a quote from Marx, by which I mean Groucho Marx. He said, "These are my principles, and if you don't like them... well, I have others." That is Fianna Fáil summed up in a nutshell. When it is in opposition, it tries to play the role of a party that is slightly on the left. Now that is in government and nicely ensconced under the wings of Fine Gael, it is a different matter. The people I will meet over the weekend and next week, the terrified tenants, know there is no difference between the parties.
I will provide a concrete example of this. In my village of Castleconnell, there is a rogue landlord who has already told his tenants that, as soon as these restrictions are lifted, he will increase their rents. These are working people who struggle from week to week and from month to month to pay their rents. What the Government is doing today will allow this man to increase these people's rents. They will have no protections. That is the reality. Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil stand for rent increases while Sinn Féin stands for tenants. I am proud of the side I am on.

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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