Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 4 July 2013
189. Deputy Willie Penrose asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if he will indicate if there are any proposals to strengthen anti-social behaviour provisions whereby persons renting are causing disturbance, annoyance and nuisance to their neighbours in both private and local authority estates; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32854/13]
View answerWhile action to deal with anti-social behaviour is primarily a matter for An Garda Síochána, there are a range of provisions in housing legislation to counter such activity in the residential sector.
In the case of local authority housing, councils have the power to refuse to allocate, or to refuse to sell, a dwelling to a person engaged in anti-social behaviour and the power to seek a court order excluding such a person from entering a local authority dwelling or estate for a period of up to 3 years. Every housing authority has a statutory duty to adopt and review an anti-social behaviour strategy for the prevention and reduction of anti-social behaviour in its housing stock, which must provide for co-operation with other relevant bodies, notably the Gardaí . Proposals for a new Housing Bill currently being developed in my Department include a revised procedure to replace section 62 of the Housing Act, 1966, which will enable housing authorities to recover possession of their dwellings from households in serious breach of their tenancy agreements, including engaging in anti-social behaviour. I am also examining the scope in the forthcoming Bill for strengthening the excluding order powers of housing authorities.
Insofar as private rented accommodation is concerned, the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 prohibits a tenant in a private residential tenancy from engaging in anti-social behaviour in, or in the vicinity of, a dwelling to which the Act applies and allows a landlord to terminate a tenancy at short notice where the tenant is engaging in, or allowing others to engage in , such behaviour. The 2004 Act also empowers a third party adversely affected by anti-social behaviour to make a complaint to the PRTB against a landlord who has failed to enforce tenant obligations. The Act allows the Board to furnish the name and address of the landlord concerned to a person who proposes to make such a complaint. However, the third party complainant must have taken reasonable steps to resolve the matter by communicating or attempting to communicate with the parties to the tenancy concerned before making the complaint to the Board.
