Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 23 May 2024
5. Deputy Mairéad Farrell asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science if he has any plans as regards the area of student digs regulation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23474/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Minister mentioned how important digs are in the provision of student accommodation. This year, I published a very workable regulation on student digs. Will he give a commitment to taking a look at that Bill and outline his own plans in this area?
As the Deputy will be aware, the rent-a-room scheme is under the remit of the Minister for Finance, my colleague Deputy McGrath. However, I acknowledge that my Department and the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage are the main users of the scheme. Therefore, I am very conscious of the need to safeguard our students in digs accommodations, which are typically more informal and flexible arrangements in family homes. For this reason the usual Residential Tenancy Board protections do not apply to this type of accommodation provision.
In line with Housing for All objectives to increase protections in private rental accommodation, the Department published a voluntary regulatory framework and sample licence agreement in September 2023. The guidance aims to assist both homeowners and students who wish to participate in the rent-a-room scheme and highlights to them the key issues to consider when entering into the scheme. I encourage all students and homeowners using this scheme to consider this advice and to ensure all parameters are agreed in advance of entering into any agreement.
My Department has engaged with the HEI sector and has shared the final version of both the voluntary regulatory framework and the licence agreement for publication on their websites and for sharing with students. An individual can rent a room or rooms in their home, retain their social welfare entitlements where applicable, and earn up to €14,000 in rental income before having to pay tax. The Government also approved an extension of the rent-a-room relief scheme to disregard income earned when determining medical card eligibility and when examining reckonable income for support under the SUSI grant scheme. In addition, the scheme has been extended to allow local authority tenants to participate, which is very important. This will be on an administrative basis initially, targeting the provision of additional rooms for third-level students.
While I note the Deputy's position, I would caution against cliff-edge measures which could significantly impact on the digs supply and drive people out of the market. My Government colleagues and I will continue our work to increase awareness, safeguards and availability of the scheme which is an important provider of flexible and affordable accommodation for students and the wider rental market.
The Minister mentioned a cliff edge. Has he read my legislation and where does he thinks it would result in a cliff edge? It would not provide an equal level of protection as someone in a typical tenancy because I have recognised that these students would be living in someone's home. However, it would have ensured they could not be made homeless overnight. I think that is reasonable. It would have ensured a young woman was afforded a degree of privacy whereby she could have a lock on her bedroom door which would give her a level of privacy and protection, which I believe the Minister would agree can be needed. That is reasonable. It would have allowed these homes to be included in the Government's rent pressure zones. That is reasonable. It would have given both the student and the homeowner access to the RTB for dispute resolution, therefore protecting both parties. I think again that is reasonable. I was told the Minister's Department was going to give this Bill due consideration, but am I hearing now he believes it is a cliff edge and he will not be?
No. The Department will consider and will have regard to absolutely everything. One of the things we do not want to do, by virtue of the introduction of any measure, is for people are already participating in the scheme to feel threatened. In many cases these are retired people and will have to make a declaration of interests. I stayed in digs myself when I was in college and the person I was staying with was retired and derived an income from that arrangement. It has come back into vogue much more in recent years than it was. It was gone in many cases. As I said a while ago, there are 2,200 beds available today. With the voluntary scheme that is in place, we are anxious to engage with student unions, the representatives of the universities, colleges and everybody else to ensure the standards are appropriate. We do not want people in inappropriate settings, but by the same token, I have to be very conscious of the fact this is housing legislation which my colleague, the Minister for housing, will have to have regard to in the first instance. We do not want a situation where we would face a cliff edge, and that is a very obvious concern we would have.
I totally get that, and that is why I put together reasonable legislation that was regularly mentioned by the Minister's predecessor. Because of the housing crisis and the disastrous response by the Government, people do not realistically have much other choice than to go into digs. Digs are fantastic and it can benefit both the person living in them and the homeowner.
My Bill is very reasonable and doable and its language mirrors that of the existing Residential Tenancies Act. I ensured there was input from expert groups and from legal practitioners and that it would bring regulatory oversight to an area that does not have it. It would very much formalise a very informal relationship.
What is very interesting is that survey data shows that it is not just students who want this but homeowners themselves. If we take the example of an elderly woman living by herself and somebody keeps telling her they will be good for the rent next week or the week after but never pays, at least that person would have access to the RTB and could have it dealt with. These kinds of protections are needed now that we are so reliant on digs.
Again, this is a matter in the first instance for the Minister for housing. I am sure there are very good elements in the Deputy's Bill and I am not saying there are not. I understand what the Deputy is saying. However, I would caution against the kind of narrative - I am not suggesting for one minute that Deputy Farrell is saying it - that digs are somehow a last resort. They should not be spoken of with that terminology or phraseology, that when everything else has run out, there are digs. For a lot of people, the transition from an isolated rural location to a city centre can be quite difficult and it might very well be a first resort. The financial supports being made available by the Government through the tax breaks and by allowing people in local authority housing to avail of that scheme are very welcome. It is the kind of initiative I want to see furthered out.
As well as that, having stayed in such accommodation myself and having had a very positive experience there for the first year I was in university, which made the transition easier, I do not have any difficulty with people being able to go to a vehicle, whether that is the university or whatever, to ensure situations can be identified. In the first instance, however, it is a matter for the Minister for housing and I will be raising it with him in the context of what the Deputy has said.
