There are currently approximately 71,500 rent supplement recipients for which the Government has provided over €298 million for 2015.
The Department is finalising a review of the maximum rent limits and raising rent limits may not be the solution to the problem as it is likely to add to further rental inflation and could impact, not alone on rent supplement recipients, but also on many lower income workers, their families, and students. I am keeping this matter under close review.
The Department has put measures in place to support rent supplement recipients at risk of homelessness or loss of their tenancy in the currently constrained private rented market, including the issuance of the information note referred to by the Deputy. A National Framework has also been developed to ensure that appropriate supports continue to be provided throughout the country in a consistent manner. The Interim Tenancy Sustainment Protocol introduced in the Dublin region during 2014, has provided support for some 340 families to date which represents approximately 2% of families receiving rent supplement in Dublin. The protocol has also been extended to Cork city within the last week.
These measures, whilst they provide for flexibility within the administration of the rent supplement scheme on a case by case basis, will ensure that the risk of rent supplement contributing to rental inflation trends throughout the State is minimised. The Department continues to monitor the use of discretionary power for the purposes of preventing homelessness or the loss of a tenancy, which remains low in the overall context of the rent supplement customer base.
Policy in relation to rent controls is a matter for my colleague, the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government.
