Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 11 May 2005
208 Dr. Upton asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the procedures which are in place to monitor the standard of accommodation provided by private landlords whose tenants are in receipt of rent supplement; if he has satisfied himself that tenants in receipt of rent supplement are placed in suitable accommodation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15607/05]
View answerRent supplements are available through the supplementary welfare allowance scheme, which is administered on my behalf by the community welfare division of the Health Service Executive.
To qualify for a rent supplement, a person must satisfy a means test. The executive must satisfy itself also that the applicant has a genuine accommodation need which he or she cannot provide for, that a bona fide tenancy arrangement exists between the applicant and the landlord and that the property being rented is suitable to his or her needs. The executive may consider that a property is not suited to the applicant's needs if the accommodation does not comply with the Housing (Standards for Rented Housing) Regulations 1993.
Responsibility for enforcing housing standards regulation rests with the local authorities. In addition, the Private Residential Tenancies Board provides a mechanism for dealing with problems between landlords and tenants associated with rent levels, accommodation conditions, etc., and its services are available to people in receipt of rent supplement in the same way as for any other tenant.
The Government has introduced a new system of rental assistance to be operated by the local authorities. One of its objectives is to ensure that a full range of good-standard and appropriate housing options is available to people with long-term housing needs, who currently rely on rent supplement. The rental accommodation scheme component of the new arrangements will involve local authorities in ongoing contact with participating private rented sector landlords. This will place the authorities in a position to enforce good accommodation standards for people receiving housing support under the scheme.
