A lot done, more to do? : local authority housing standards in Ireland

According to the Census 2016, the demand for rented accommodation in Ireland has continued its upward trend, with 497,111 households renting, an increase of 4.7 per cent on 2011.1 As a result, renting is the tenure status for almost 30 per cent of all occupied dwellings in the State. Significantly, renting from a local authority showed the largest increase, up 11 per cent from 129,033 in 2011 to 143,178 in 2016.2 However, a serious issue has arisen in relation to the standard of rental accommodation, with particular attention being focused on local authority housing. Having regard to the Census 2006, Kenna noted “almost 20% of local authority housing was without central heating, a higher proportion than any other tenure”.3 Yet, more than a decade later, the provision of substandard local authority housing appears to persist, with media outlets regularly reporting on cases of significant concern.4 In this context, it is worthwhile to reconsider the underlying legal obligations placed on local authorities, specifically, to ensure local authority housing meets certain minimum standards.5 These obligations are derived from a range of sources and have developed in a very piecemeal fashion over almost a century. This article seeks to highlight some of these sources, placing particular emphasis on recent regulatory developments in the area, notably the Housing (Standards for Rented Houses) Regulations 2017