Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 3 June 2020
1156. Deputy Cian O'Callaghan asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government further to Parliamentary Question No. 1389 of 20 May 2020, the number of recommendations of the working group report on the regulation of short-term lettings that have been implemented; the number of recommendations outstanding; if a progress report on the outstanding recommendations will be provided; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8964/20]
View answerIn June 2017 a Working Group was established involving representatives of all major public stakeholders with a policy interest in short-term lettings, to develop guidance in relation to planning applications, changes of use relating to short-term lettings and to examine the need for new regulatory arrangements.
In October 2018, having considered the Working Group's report as well as the recommendations in the report on short-term lettings of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government, I announced plans to regulate the short-term letting sector and introduce a “one host, one home” model in areas where there is high housing demand. These new planning reforms came into effect on 1 July 2019.
Where a person owns a property in a rent pressure zone which is not their principal private residence and intends to let it for short term letting purposes, s/he is required under the new arrangements to apply for a change of use planning permission unless the property already has a specific planning permission to be used for tourism or short-term letting purposes.
However, home-sharing continues to be permissible for a person’s primary residence. In addition, an annual cap of 90 days applies to the renting out on a short-term basis of a person's entire home where it is their primary residence, with such short-term lets restricted to periods of 14 days or less at a time. Under these arrangements, people who wish to avail of the planning exemptions to use their own home for home-sharing or limited short-term letting purposes are required to register this with their local planning authority. These changes do not affect the operation of holiday homes as typically understood, or longer-term flexible lettings which are provided for those coming to Ireland under employment contracts. The purpose of the aforementioned changes to the planning code was primarily to address the longer term rental issues arising from the use of properties for short-term letting in designated rent pressure zones, which are areas of high housing demand.
The broader regulation of tourism activity, including the possible development of a new regulatory or licensing/ registration system for commercial platforms and short-term letting agents - as recommended in the final Working Group report - is beyond the scope of the planning code and my remit.
It will be a matter for the incoming Government to decide on any further actions it may wish to take in relation to the possible regulation of online platforms.
As part of the immediate response to COVID-19, a number of properties formerly available as short-term lets were secured by local authorities to provide accommodation for households experiencing homelessness. The level of enquiries to local authorities indicates that there are a number of properties which have been previously rented as tourist accommodation. Local authorities are engaging with property owners in relation to the use of such properties for longer-term social housing, including long-term leasing. Given the number of households on the social housing waiting list, including the number of households in homeless emergency accommodation, it is important that as many of these properties as possible are converted from tourist accommodation to homes. My Department is currently assessing the impact that the COVID-19 pandemic is having on the Short-Term Letting sector, and has asked the relevant local authorities to provide an update regarding same.
