Danny Healy-Rae warns against six-year tenancy and Airbnb rules
Danny Healy-Rae spoke about housing measures affecting Kerry, opposing a proposed six-year tenancy requirement and restrictions on Airbnbs while criticising planning and council purchase practices. He said these policies will not work in Kerry and highlighted landlords' refusal to continue leasing, limits on one-off rural homes, and failures in the tenant-in-situ scheme.
He said the plan to lock landlords into six-year tenancies is unworkable in Kerry because many landlords are refusing to continue leasing their properties. He warned that trying to force people into long-term tenancies will not succeed in the county.
He raised objections to proposals aimed at shutting Airbnbs or forcing them into long-term leasing, arguing that many people rely on short-term rentals for their livelihoods. He said forcing change on those operators will not work in the local context.
He said planning for one-off houses in Kerry is effectively limited to farmers, their sons and daughters, while others who have lived in the countryside all their lives are not receiving permission. He noted that he and others have raised this issue repeatedly and seek action to address it.
He criticised the tenant-in-situ scheme as not working because county council inspections find defects and then decline to buy the properties. He said councils will not buy second-hand houses in Kerry and instead are only purchasing new houses, undermining the scheme's effectiveness.
Six-year tenancy concerns
He said the plan to lock landlords into six-year tenancies is unworkable in Kerry because many landlords are refusing to continue leasing their properties. He warned that trying to force people into long-term tenancies will not succeed in the county.
Airbnb and long-term leasing
He raised objections to proposals aimed at shutting Airbnbs or forcing them into long-term leasing, arguing that many people rely on short-term rentals for their livelihoods. He said forcing change on those operators will not work in the local context.
Rural one-off house planning
He said planning for one-off houses in Kerry is effectively limited to farmers, their sons and daughters, while others who have lived in the countryside all their lives are not receiving permission. He noted that he and others have raised this issue repeatedly and seek action to address it.
Tenant-in-situ scheme and council purchases
He criticised the tenant-in-situ scheme as not working because county council inspections find defects and then decline to buy the properties. He said councils will not buy second-hand houses in Kerry and instead are only purchasing new houses, undermining the scheme's effectiveness.
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Transcript
And look, Ministers, this plan that you have to lock people into a six-year tenancy for people that are renting out houses, that's not going to work in Kerry anyway. The most people that are around to me every day, the landlords are refusing to continue leasing the properties term. That's not going to work, trying to force people into a six-year tenancy. Also, the plans that you have for the Airbnbs, to force them in to shut long-term leasing, that's not going to work either, people, that's how they're getting their livelihoods open to now. And planning for one-off houses in Kerry, the only one that's getting those now, and that's fine, we appreciate that, is farmers, sons and daughters. Anyone else out in the country that have been there all their lives, they are not getting planning permission. And we asked several times to do something about that. And also, the tenant-in-situ scheme is not working simply because the county council goes out to look at the house and they'll find anything or something or many things wrong at the house and they just will not buy it. And they won't buy any second-hand house in Kerry, only new houses. I'm wanting to address those issues. Thank you very much.