Labour law on rent pressures needed to curb the rising cost of living

Commenting on today’s recommendation of the Living Wage Technical Group Labour Party spokesperson on Housing, Jan O’Sullivan has said that the Government urgently needs to link rent to the cost of living and extend the rent pressure zones nationwide.

O’Sullivan said:

“Today’s recommendation of an increase of the living wage to €11.90 comes as a result of the rise in rents across the country. Labour’s Bill, introduced in the Dáil in June, to convince the Government of the merits of linking rent to inflation through the Consumer Price Index is clearly needed. The entire country should now be categorised as a rent pressure zone.

“Minster Murphy has some explaining to do – why has the government continued to fail people in rental accommodation? The cost of living is rising as result of their failing housing policy. Rent is now accounting for nearly 50% of some people’s living cost in cities like Dublin.

“Most people who are being made homeless end up that way because their rents have been hiked. Wages are clearly not sufficiently high enough to keep pace with rents in Ireland, most especially for low wage earners. It is a really urgent and serious situation which needs solutions now before more renters face not being able to make ends meet.”