Vol. 555 No. 1
18 Mr. M. Higgins asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the status of the legislation which was promised arising from the report of the commission on the private rented sector; when the private rented tenancies board will be established on a statutory basis; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17342/02]
164 Mr. Allen asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the progress made to date regarding the implementation of the Government's response to the recommendations of the commission on the private rented sector published in January 2000; the commitments published to date; the commitments to be published; if a timetable has been set for the outstanding commitments; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17521/02]
272 Mr. Allen asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government his proposals to introduce rent controls in the private rented sector to protect sitting tenants against landlords setting rent increases well in excess of the rate of inflation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17659/02]
311 Mr. Allen asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government when the Housing (Private Rented Sector) Bill will be published; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17704/02]
332 Mr. Allen asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the progress regarding the implementation of the Government's response to the recommendations of the commission on the private rented sector published in January 2000; if the general scheme of a Bill to provide additional protection for tenants has been submitted to Government; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17735/02]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 18, 164, 272, 311 and 332 together.
The Government has approved the general scheme of the Housing (Private Rented Sector) Bill and it is with the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel to the Government for priority drafting. I hope to be in a position to publish the Bill in early 2003. When enacted, the legislation will provide for the establishment of the private residential tenancies board on a statutory basis. The board was set up on an ad hoc basis in October last year. It will be ready shortly to commence offering a pilot dispute resolution service to deal with disputes that are referred to it on a voluntary basis during this phase of its operation.
Government proposals for major reforms in the private rented sector, in response to the recommendations contained in the report of the commission on the private rented residential sector, were announced in January 2001. The majority of the proposed reforms require primary legislation for implementation. The fiscal reforms recommended by the commission and accepted by Government were implemented first by way of the last two Finance Acts. Those included in the Finance Act, 2001 were a reduction in the stamp duty rate for new residential investment properties, tax relief on rental income in respect of refurbishment capital expenditure, the re-introduction of interest relief on borrowings in the case of certain properties meeting specified conditions and roll-over relief on capital gains tax in respect of qualifying reinvestment in the sector. The Finance Act, 2002 reintroduced interest deductibility generally and realigned the stamp duty rate applying to investors with that applying to non-first-time buyer owner-occupiers.
The remainder of the reforms will be implemented via the Housing (Private Rented Sector) Bill. In summary, the main purpose of the proposed Bill is to prohibit rents greater than the market rate and allow rent reviews no more frequently than once a year, unless there has been a substantial change in the nature of the accommodation; to introduce a four year security of tenure measure; to establish on a statutory basis the private residential tenancies board to resolve disputes and perform other research and information functions; to provide for the board to replace the present role of the courts in relation to landlord and tenant disputes; to specify new tenancy termination arrangements, including graduated notice periods; to provide for specified tenancy obligations applying to landlords and tenants; to provide for the registration of tenancy details by landlords with the board and repeal the existing registration regulations; to abolish, five years after the commencement date of the new legislation, the entitlement to apply for the first time for a lease under Part II of the Landlord and Tenant (Amendment) Act 1980; and to make consequential amendments to the landlord and tenant legislative code.
