Rory Hearne
Question:166. Deputy Rory Hearne asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he will introduce a winter eviction ban; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5101/26]
View answerWednesday, 21 January 2026
Questions (166)
Written answers
The previous Government agreed on 7 March 2023 that the ‘Winter Emergency Period’ under the Residential Tenancies (Deferment of Termination Dates of Certain Tenancies) Act 2022 would come to an end on 31 March 2023, with deferred tenancy terminations taking effect over a staggered period from 1 April to 18 June 2023 as planned and legislated for under that Act. The Government has no plans to introduce a further eviction ban.
The Government remains focused on growing the supply of much needed rental accommodation by keeping existing landlords in the market and attracting new landlords, while ensuring strong and balanced tenancy protections for both tenants and landlords.
The RTB's Profile of the Register shows that at the end of Q3 2025, there were 240,751 registered private tenancies, an increase of 1.9% annually, with 103,774 private landlords. There were also 18,425 new tenancy registrations in Q3 2025.
On 14 October 2025, the Government approved the General Scheme of the Residential Tenancies (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2025, which is now the subject of priority legal drafting by the Office of Parliamentary Counsel. The Bill will amend the current system of rent controls and provide new measures to protect tenants, including stronger security of tenure, to come into effect for new tenancies created on or after 1 March 2026. The text of the Bill will be finalised for publication as soon as possible.
A detailed communications campaign by my Department, in conjunction with the RTB, will continue to publicise the new legislative measures from 1 March 2026. Up-to-date information is available at: [Government Reforms to the Rental Sector – Starting 1 March 2026].