asked the Minister for the Environment if he is aware that local authority tenants of sub-standard accommodation, which often has no bath or indoor toilet, continue to receive the same level of rent increase as tenants in modern accommodation; if he considers this to be fair and equitable; and if he will consider introducing changes whereby the condition of the accommodation (the lack of facilities etc.) will be taken into consideration when fixing rend charges.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Local Authority Tenants.
15.
While the differential rents system for local authority dwellings is designed primarily to relate the rents payable by individual tenants to their financial and family circumstances, it is also structured to ensure that the maximum rents in respect of individual schemes will not exceed levels related to the original cost of providing the schemes. As a result, the maximum rents applicable to individual tenants normally vary in accordance with the relative standard of the schemes in which they reside, although within the scales, the rents payable by tenants with comparable means may not show a corresponding variation. This situation-is the result of the use of the ability-to-pay principle as the primary factor in determining rents. Since this principle gives the fairest result overall and since it ensures that no tenant will be charged more than he can afford, I do not consider any change in the system to be warranted.
Is the Minister aware that the most recent increase of approximately £3 per week has been applied to those living in accommodation which the corporation of this city have decribed as unit for human habitation and that precisely the same level of increase applies to tenants of very modern accommodation? I am taking two extremes, but the same holds good right across the board. People living in the most inadequate accommodation, without indoor toilets or bathrooms, have been forced to pay the same increase as those in the most modern accommodation. This has caused the city council concern and they have requested a meeting with the Minister to discuss the situation. They take it very seriously. Does the Minister take it seriously? Does he regard this as fair and equitable? Does he agree that it is happening, as I know it is?
I do not want to interrupt the Deputy, but he has gone far enough in his question.
He is doing very well.
I shall rephrase the question. Does the Minister agree that this situation is fair and equitable? I cannot see how he could. If he does not, will he review the situation to see if changes can be introduced to take into consideration accommodation which is substandard and very inadequate, so as to ensure that the tenants of such accommodation do not have to pay the same increase as tenants in very modern accommodation?
The Deputy has been repeating himself since he stood up.
The main difficulty underlying the scheme is that rents should be based on the household income and reflect the ability of tenants to pay. If the emphasis were on relating rents to the standard of accommodation rather than on the household income, many tenants would be asked to pay rents beyond what they could afford. That is the underlying principle of the differential rents system which is applied now.
I am not criticising the differential rents system. I am not sure if the Minister is aware of the case which I am arguing, but he seems to be evading the point which I am arguing.
That is not a suitable subject for arguing.
I am simply asking the Minister, with regard to the differential rents system, which I am not asking to be changed, to introduce an additional element into it which will discriminate psitively in favour of tenants in substandard accommodation and will take into account the substandard nature of thier accommodation. I am asking, not to change the entire system but simply to put in an additional element——
The Deputy has asked the Minister a question. He should allow him to reply.
——to make some allowance for the very bad conditions under which many tenants are forced to live?
It is a matter for the local authority to modernise substandard dwellings. The Department operate a scheme for the financing of such works which makes grants and unsubsidised loans to available to housing authorities to provide, among other things, bathrooms and showers in substandard dwellings. Some work carried out Dublin has been financed under this scheme. If the corporation have a particular problem and wish to speak to me, I shall certainly listen to what they have to say. As of now, I am not aware of any correspondence in relation to this matter having been sent to me.
A final supplementary from Deputy Gregory.
I appreciate that the Minister has offered to speak with the council in this matter. They are anxious to speak with the Minister. It seems that the Minister is not aware of the seriousness of the problem.
Would the Deputy please ask a question?
I am simply asking the Minister to acquaint himself with the problem which I have tried to highlight. It is within the existing rents scheme and is most unfair and inequitable.