Paul Murphy: Bill is a 'landlord's charter' that will raise rents
Paul Murphy criticised the rental bill as a deliberate measure to push rents higher and called it a "landlord's charter." He warned the bill will increase costs for renters, including homeless hop tenants, and flagged legal and eviction loopholes in sections 8(e)(2) and 14.
Main accusation
Paul Murphy said the bill is expressly designed to drive up rents to attract investment and is not an accidental outcome. He described it as a bill for "ripoff rents" and warned that within a few years virtually all renters could face an extra 3 000 euros a year or about 250 euros a month.
Impact on vulnerable tenants
He highlighted a "double blow" for hop tenants and homeless hop tenants, who are already facing council rent increases. He argued the bill will force additional top-ups and represent a shameful attack on the poorest households who are also struggling with the cost-of-living emergency.
Legal uncertainty over part 4 tenancies and section 8(e)(2)
Murphy raised a detailed legal concern about section 8(e)(2), saying it appears to allow rents to be reset to market rates for tenants in pre-June-2022 part 4 tenancies when their fixed term expires and they enter a further part 4 tenancy. He quoted the minister's claim that section 8 creates new national rent control for tenancies created on or after 1 March 2026, but said the bill text does not clearly exclude further part 4 tenancies of limited duration and asked for a specific ministerial reply.
Eviction loophole in section 14
He warned that section 14 would let so-called small landlords carry out a no-fault eviction on grounds of sale if they pledge to use at least 15 percent of proceeds to pay a debt falling due within nine months. Murphy said this creates a massive loophole that could be used by buy-to-let landlords approaching mortgage term to evict tenants purely to maximise sale price, and that a short-term loan could be used to exploit the provision.
Campaign response and remedies proposed
Murphy said a broad coalition including People Before Profit, Sinn Féin, the Social Democrats, Left Independents in the Dáil, disabled persons organisations, trade unions, students unions and civil society groups is launching the Affordable Ireland campaign next week. He said one key plank is to freeze and cap rents and to build public housing, and argued that the government will act on the cost-of-living crisis only if forced by people power.
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i want to get into some detailed points about this bill some points that i don't think have been raised yet including the double blow that is presented here for hop tenants for homeless hop tenants who are already being hit in many areas with council rent increases but before that just that the basic point about this which cannot be driven home hard enough this is a bill for ripoff rents that's the purpose of it it's not an accidental outcome of it that's the purpose the government's strategy explicitly is to get rents to rise higher in order to attract more investment it is a landlord's charter written by a landlord's government it is designed to drive up rents even higher than the unbelievably high levels that they're already at it means that within the next few years virtually all renters will be paying at least an extra 3 000 euros a year or an extra 250 euros a month you would think the government has no idea that we are in the middle of a dire cost of a living emergency that people can't afford to pay the rent they can't afford to heat their homes they can't afford to put food on the table they can't afford to buy things for their kids they already can't afford to live that is why people before profits shin fein the social democrats left independence in the daul and a broad coalition of disabled persons organizations trade unions students unions civil society groups are launching the affordable ireland campaign next week and one of the key planks of that campaign is to freeze and cap rents and build public housing the government will only take action on the cost of living crisis if it's forced so we need people power to force them i want to turn to section 8 e 2 of the bill which seems to me to potentially allow for rent heights to market rates for existing pre-june 22 tenants whose part 4 tenancy expires and they then enter into a further part 4 tenancy for another six years so the minister said in his opening speech yesterday that quote section 8 provides for a new national rent control in respect of new tenancies that is first time tenancies between parties created on or after the first of march 2026 that is supposed to reassure existing tenants that their rents won't shoot up yet unless they move voluntarily or involuntarily of course that happens in any case on average every three and a half years for most tenants and every year for students in private rented accommodation even more they are even more shafted by this bill than everyone else another group getting doubly shafted are the hop tenants and the homeless hop tenants dublin city council has already hiked rent rents councils across the country have already hiked the rents that they are paying to the council on top of that now they're going to be increasing the top up that they have to pay to their landlords a shameful attack on the poorest households in the country but to return to what the minister is saying he's saying this doesn't affect pre-june 2022 part 4 tenancies as i understand it but if you read section 8 e 2 it says that it doesn't apply to quote a tenancy to which section 5 4 of the residential tenancies amendment act 2021 applies which means it doesn't apply to further part 4 tenancies of unlimited duration but i can't see anywhere in the bill and i look forward to the minister replying i can't see anywhere in the bill specifically stating that it doesn't apply to further part 4 tenancies that aren't of unlimited duration in other words the situations where the tenants moved in prior to june 22. say you moved into your home in april 2020 you're coming to the end of a six-year part 4 tenancy it'll expire in april 2026 at that point assuming you aren't evicted first it will automatically become a further part 4 six-year tenancy but where does it say in the bill that this part further part 4 tenancy isn't a new tenancy citizen information says that after these six years the tenancy ends and a new tenancy can begin if a further part 4 tenancy is legally a new tenancy then section 8 e 2 appears to say that a dwelling that was previously rent controlled for the previous section six years all those rents would be reset to market rates can administer specifically answer that question the final issue i want to raise is about section 14 it allows for so-called small landlords to carry out a no-fault eviction on grounds of sale if they would use at least 15 percent of the proceeds to pay off some or all of a debt that they owe that is falling due within nine months of the eviction date that appears to me to be a massive loophole that will allow buy to let landlords to evict evict tenants on grounds of sale when they're coming towards the end of their mortgage term and there's no need for it they can simply sell in any case with the tenants in situ without forcing to uh forcing their eviction the only reason to allow it is to maximize their sale price there's also nothing to stop a landlord taking on a short-term loan in order to say this is falling due and therefore i can use this loophole to sell deputy roger cookwoman
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