Government says renters legislation will assist vulnerable tenants impacted by Covid-19

A ban on evictions will be extended for tenants unable to pay their rent because of the Covid-19 pandemic, if they self-declare to the Residential Tenancies Board, according to Minister for Housing Darragh OBrien.
Introducing new rental legislation in the Dáil he said it was aimed at tenants in the private rental sector on a Covid-19 welfare payment or who had lost their job because of the coronavirus crisis.
He insisted it was targeted at the most vulnerable and said the Government recognises that Covid-19 has been hard on many tenants, particularly those working in the worst effected sectors of the economy such as the hospitality sector.
The Minister defended the legislation against a swathe of opposition TDs who trenchantly claimed it would open the door to evictions and increased homelessness.
Mr OBrien said notices of termination will increase from 28 to 90 days under the Residential Tenancies and Valuation Bill, for people who make a written declaration that the economic impact of Covid-19 has rendered them unable to pay their rent and at a significant risk of tenancy termination.
The Minister said the tailored approach in this Bill targets a prohibition on rent increases to those who most need them. It protects tenants from imminent tenancy termination caused by rent arrears.
Mr OBrien said the earliest such tenants would have to leave their homes was January 11th 2021.
But he recognised that some landlords also find themselves on the wrong side of Covid-19, and we do recognise constitutionally protected property rights.
This legislation seeks to protect both tenants and landlords.
It was being introduced in the context of moving from a public health emergency into an economic recovery phase. We must adjust to a new normal. The residential rental sector has its part to play during the economic fall-out that has some time to run.
Opposition TDs trenchantly warned however that people who were still working but on low-pay faced eviction.
Sinn Féin housing spokesman Eoin Ó Broin said the Ministers first Bill is nothing short of an attack on renters. It strips vital protections from the vast majority of tenants just as the time they most desperately need it.
If the Bill is passed rent increases are back on the table and existing and new notices to quit on all grounds are back on the table.
He said the protections for renters whose incomes have been hit by Covid-19 are weak, overly complex and it will be very easy for a small number of rogue landlords to get around.
Labour housing spokesman Aodhán Ó Riordáin said the Bill had limited protections for those impacted Covid-19. Because of this legislation we can be sure we will now see an increase in homelessness in the autumn.
He said: This flawed Bill wont stop people losing their homes and no fault evictions are back. Substantial renovation evictions are back and evictions for the benefit of family members are back.
Social Democrats spokesman Cian OCallaghan said the legislation was full of loopholes. Regional spikes in Covid-19 are expected and there should be powers to extend the moratorium in such incidents, he said.
People Before Profit TD Richard Boyd Barrett said the Bill had been misrepresented by the Government as an extension of protections for tenants, when in fact it will remove the protections from many tenants.
He said it will allow landlords to resume evictions on the grounds of sale which was one of the major causes of evictions into homelessness prior to the pandemic.
Independent TD Michael Healy-Rae said however that some TDs were talking as if property falls out of the sky and land at the feed of homeowners.
He said landlords had mortgages too but were being described as if they are bad people when they are taxpayers.
You do have to remember that there are elope whose jobs are not affected and who didnt lose any money and who stopped paying rent. Landlords still have to pay their mortgage, he said adding that he knew of people who were getting rent allowance but did not pay rent.