Update: Monitoring Levels of Rent Support 16th July 2014

To the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection

To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the extent to which her Department continues to monitor the level of rent support available to applicants on local authority housing waiting lists having particular regard to current market trends; if she is in a position to make any provision to assist persons likely to become homeless in the current situation; and if she will make a statement on the matter.

– Bernard J. Durkan.

*    For WRITTEN answer on Tuesday, 15th July, 2014.

The purpose of rent supplement is to provide short-term income support to eligible people living in private rented accommodation. There are approximately 76,000 rent supplement recipients for which the Government has provided over €344 million for 2014.

A review of the maximum rent limits has commenced and will feed into the budgetary process. This review involves a comprehensive analysis of information from a range of external sources in addition to seeking the views from a number of stakeholders including staff administering the scheme, relevant Departments and Agencies and non-Government organisations such as Threshold, Focus Ireland and the Society of St Vincent de Paul.

Prospective tenants, including those seeking to access rent supplement, particularly in urban areas, are finding it increasingly difficult to secure appropriate accommodation due to the reduced availability of rental properties.

The Department has agreed a protocol with the Dublin local authorities and voluntary organisations so that families on rent supplement who are at risk of losing their accommodation can have more timely and appropriate interventions made on their behalf.   A key element of these arrangements is the statutory discretion available to officers, to award a supplement at a rate higher than the prevailing maximum rent limits where the circumstances of the case so warrant.

I can assure the Deputy that officers administering rent supplement throughout the country have considerable experience in dealing with customers and make every effort to ensure that their accommodation needs are met. A notice reminding all staff of their statutory discretionary power to award a supplement for rental purposes in exceptional cases, for example, when dealing with applicants who at risk of losing their tenancy, has recently been circulated.  

In July 2013 the Government approved the introduction of the Housing Assistance Payment (HAP). Under HAP, responsibility for recipients of rent supplement with a long-term housing need will transfer from the Department of Social Protection to housing authorities. Officials are working closely with those in the lead Department of Environment, Community and Local Government, in piloting HAP in Limerick City and County Council with further roll out to selected housing authorities during the year.