SINN Féin election candidate for Cork South West, Clare O’Callaghan, has called for a three-year ban on rent increases as an emergency action in the private rental sector.
Ms O’Callaghan cited Daft.ie’s rent report which shows rents increasing by almost 8.8% in Cork in the last year.
She urged the government to ban rent increases for all existing and new tenancies for three years, and to put a full month’s rent pack into every private renter’s pocket.
O’Callaghan said: ‘The latest Daft.ie rent report shows average new rents in Cork increasing by almost 8.8% in the last 12 months. New rents now stand at a staggering €1,410.
‘This is totally unaffordable for people on ordinary salaries in Cork South West. People need a break from sky high rents now. It’s clear that Government has totally lost control of the housing market. Government has failed to deliver a sufficient volume of social and affordable homes. Their controversial policies such as Help to Buy and the Shared Equity Loan have pushed up house prices.
‘Meanwhile, ordinary people in Cork South West are left paying the price for Government’s failures.’
Ms O’Callaghan also urged the Government to reintroduce the ban on no fault evictions. Figures released by the Residential Tenancies Board showed a dramatic increase in eviction notices issued by landlords from April to June.
Ms O’Callaghan said: ‘RTB figures released today show a dramatic increase in eviction notices issued by landlords between April and June of this year of nearly 1,000 nationwide.
‘These figures show that the number of people at risk of homelessness is set to grow in the coming months leading to further rises in homelessness.
‘Government must immediately reintroduce the ban on no fault evictions until such time as the numbers of people in emergency accommodation starts to fall.’
