When the Government announced plans to regulate short-term lets, nearly everyone welcomed it. The Department of tourism said the measure would lead to 12,000 homes returning to the long-term rental market. The Fáilte Ireland chief executive said the registration system was simple and user friendly. Even Airbnb and the Irish Self-Catering Federation welcomed the introduction of a register. The catch is that was back in 2022 - four years ago – when the Government first announced these plans. Four years of inaction, delay and excuses. This week, we learned of yet another missed deadline. A plan to have the register come into force on 20 May is dead in the water, as is any prospect of homes returning to the long-term rental market any time soon. The Government is prioritising proposals that will see renters living in sheds in back gardens with no protections instead of bringing the potentially thousands of homes listed on Airbnb back into the long-term rental market. Does the Taoiseach not see that for what it is? It is an insult to thousands of renters all over the country. This Government would prefer to see them paying thousands of euro every month to live in cabins in back gardens than to regulate Airbnb. Nearly every week, the Taoiseach tells us that housing is the Government’s number one priority. I do not think anyone believes that. Not only has it refused to introduce long-overdue regulation of an out-of-control short-term letting sector, it has gutted the regulations before they have even come into force. Initially, the Government's plan was to restrict short-term lets to towns of 10,000 or more. Then, thanks to lobbying by the Healy-Raes, it abandoned that plan, raising the bar to towns with a population of 20,000-plus. It shafted renters to keep the Healy-Raes happy only for them to walk out of government a few weeks later anyway. Record numbers of people are now homeless, including more than 5,500 children. Meanwhile, in some areas of the country, there are 25 times more homes on Airbnb than homes to rent. A Government that took the housing crisis seriously and wanted to protect renters would do something about that. On top of all this, there is no clarity on what will happen in towns with a population below 20,000. Will housing need even be a consideration or is the Government telling every town and village in rural Ireland and every square metre of the Gaeltacht that nothing is going to change? What is the Government's plan for short-term lets in these areas? Will housing need be a consideration for planning? Why has the Government been dragging its heels on regulation for four years? What is the Government's plan? Does the Government even know?

Sentiment score: -0.04

Being from west Cork, I absolutely understand the importance of tourism in the area I grew up working in local cafés and restaurants that rely on the influx of tourists in the summer. What those businesses and local schools, post offices and everything else also rely on is locals - people living in the area and workers in the area. This is about getting the balance right. The balance at the moment is not right. In Cork South-West, there are housing estates with almost nobody living in them full-time any more. The amount of short-term lets is out of control. The Government has been dragging its heels on this legislation for four years. I asked the Taoiseach why but he did not answer that question. Do I recognise the importance of tourism? Absolutely. Does the Taoiseach recognise the importance of people needing a home? In his response previously, he spoke of all of these different measures of housing success. Does he include the number of homeless people? In Cork South-West, people are contacting me. They are being evicted and have nowhere to go. That has to be weighed up against the importance of Airbnbs, too.

Sentiment score: 0.13

What do I tell the areas with fewer than 20,000?

Sentiment score: 0.00