Tipperary renters still feeling the squeeze, says Nenagh local election candidate

Labour Party local election candidate Louise Morgan Walsh has said that hardworking renters in Tipperary continue to be squeezed by a tight rental market.

Ms Morgan Walsh was commenting following the release of a Daft.ie report on rental costs.

The Nenagh District candidate said that with Rent inflation totally outstripping wage growth, it was time to implement Labour's Renters' Rights Bill.

She also pointed out that there was still no action on a Government panacea Rent to Buy Scheme and the Minister for Housing's refusal to introduce winter eviction ban would have dire consequences.

"There has been an abject failure by Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael to address the rental crisis, the catastrophic nature of which is borne out by the statistics published by Daft," said Ms Morgan Walsh.

She said that, nationwide, renting was increasingly becoming unviable for many people. 

“We know that the crisis is disproportionately impacting younger generations and families. People are trapped in an endless rental market nightmare as they can’t afford to save for a deposit whilst keeping up with monthly payments.," she said.

Ms Morgan Walsh, who narrowly lost out on a seat in 2019, said that rent remained utterly unaffordable.

"Coupled with poor supply, renters remain at the mercy of landlords. That's why Labour is urging Government to wake up and implement Labour's Renters' Rights Bill which would, among other measures, introduce a transparency register so prospective renters can see what rents previous tenants were charged. Increasing transparency in the market is just one of a range of measures currently lacking.", said Ms Morgan Walsh.

The candidate, who works in Nenagh Hospital, said that it was staggering to see the lack of rental homes available for renters and the huge annual increase in rents.

"Rents are rising nationwide, but so too is the cost of living, the price of groceries, meanwhile wages just aren’t keeping pace.

"We’re coming up to the two year anniversary of Housing for All. The crisis we find ourselves in when it comes to the rental market demands a step change in policy approach with a renewed focus on the rental sector.

"In response to Parliamentary Questions put down by Labour leader Ivana Bacik, the Minister for Housing confirmed that no plans are in place to reintroduce the eviction ban this winter. This is an utter failure of politics. Homelessness continues to rise and the least this Government could do is provide certainty to all renters that they will have a roof over their heads this winter.

"Renters are not transient, they are not just young. Renters are single households, families, older people. They must have access to affordable, quality accommodation with security of tenure. This report is another reminder of Government’s failure to protect them," she said.