150. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if plans by local councils to increase rents for council and HAP tenants reflect the commitment in the Delivering Homes, Building Communities plan to review the rents paid by social housing tenants, or if even more rent increases are planned; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18049/26]

Sentiment score: 0.20

Across Dublin City Council letters are dropping for council tenants and HAP tenants telling them the people least able to afford to pay are going to see massive rent increases of 30% on average. Dublin city renters are getting organised. I saw there was a big meeting last night, a big meeting the week before and a big meeting the week before that. Eoghan Ó Ceannabháin is involved in organising those people. The same is happening in South Dublin County Council in advance of a planned rent rise. The question is whether this is part of national government policy and just the thin end of the wedge that is going to see council and HAP rents rise and rise.

Sentiment score: -0.02

Can the Minister of State tell me whether, in the national framework the Government is going to work towards, rents are going to come down for any council tenants or are they just going to rise? That is the simple question. The Delivering Homes, Building Communities document is extremely worrying because it suggests moving away from a differential rent-based system in which people's rent is based on their income and what they can afford to pay, which is an extremely fair system. Instead the document refers to the Housing Commission recommendation of "Merging social and cost rental housing over time to form a single affordable rental sector, based on the principle of cost recovery". In other words, it will no longer be based on the principle of how much people can afford to pay but how much it costs to build the homes. That would be an extremely retrograde, regressive step. It would be a move in exactly the wrong direction and would result in even bigger rent increases for those who can least afford to pay.

Sentiment score: -0.12

I am not against a streamlined system in principle but I do not think any council tenants are going to believe the Minister of State that the Government is going to streamline this downwards to the lowest levels. Instead, everyone will hear that it is going to streamline this to the highest possible levels. That will mean even more rent increases for people who simply cannot afford to pay. I am telling the Minister of State that council tenants are getting organised in a very significant way. In Dublin City Council it is going to be a massive campaign. It was only lost by one vote. Unfortunately, the Labour Party and the Green Party voted to increase people's rents. We are building a big campaign to reverse that in the next budget. In South Dublin County Council we are a year ahead of where the city council is and we have every chance of stopping this rent increase coming in. Will the Minister of State explain to me what the idea of merging the cost rental and social housing systems would look like? What does it mean to go for it being based on the principle of cost recovery? If the Government implements that, is it not the end of the differential rents scheme?

Sentiment score: 0.08

Will you promise me you will go lower?

Sentiment score: 0.03

No, I am interrupting you though.

Sentiment score: -0.53

You tell me if you are going to go lower.

Sentiment score: -0.30

I am just asking the question.

Sentiment score: 0.00

I would ask the Minister of State whether the Government is going to reduce them.

Sentiment score: 0.00