Mayo Sinn Féin TD Rose Conway-Walsh has said that the number of eviction notices served from July to September 2022 underlined the need for the government to reverse its decision to end the eviction ban.
The Residential Tenancies Board showed that 74 eviction notices were served in Mayo in just three months in 2022, Deputy Conway-Walsh said, adding: “The figures released by the Residential Tenancies Board are truly shocking and seriously worrying. From July to September last year, 74 eviction notices in Mayo were served by landlords on their tenants. This is worrying given that there are only 34 properties to rent online in the County.
“My office has been contacted by increasing numbers of renters who do not know what they are going to do when their eviction date comes. Many other renters are crippled with increased rents, energy bills and the cost of living crisis.
“The latest RTB figures are much worse than expected. A huge number of these notices will now fall due in April. From July to September last year, 4,741 eviction notices across the state were served. That is over five times higher than the same period in 2021.
“This will mean more people than ever before will have to leave their homes. The reality is that homeless services will not be able to cope.
“The consequence will be thousands of people forced to stay with family and friends, a rise in rough sleeping, and the prospect of families with children being referred to Garda stations for a safe place to sleep.
“The government does not grasp the severity of the situation. This situation is a direct consequence of government failure. For years they have over-relied on the private rental sector to meet social and affordable housing need.
“For six years, single property landlords have been leaving the market. Despite this, government has abjectly failed to deliver a sufficient volume of social and affordable housing, or to purchase private rental accommodation with tenants being able to stay in their homes.
“Government must immediately reverse the decision to end the ban on evictions. Emergency legislation must be brought before the Dáil before the ban ends on March 31st and all renters must be given the protection they deserve.
“The government must accompany an extension of the ban on evictions with emergency measures to extend and expand the tenant-in-situ scheme for social and affordable rental and using emergency planning and procurement powers to target vacant and derelict homes and new building technologies to ramp up the delivery of public housing.”
