Latest news with #ChristopherOSullivan
Irish Times
2 days ago
- Business
- Irish Times
Rent Pressure Zones could be in place across country by Friday, Dáil told
An emergency law to extend Rent Pressure Zones (RPZs) to the entire country could be in place by Friday if the President signs the legislation immediately after the Oireachtas passes it, the Dáil has heard. Minister of State for Housing Christopher O'Sullivan said the Residential Tenancies (Amendment) Bill is an 'immediate and concrete protection against high rent inflation'. The controversial legislation is being rushed through both Houses replacing scheduled proceedings as an interim measure to 'quickly protect all tenants from high rent increases'. The Opposition supported the legislation, despite intense criticism of the Government's 'ramshackle, haphazard' and 'back-of-the-envelope' reform proposals. READ MORE [ Thousands of holiday lets will need planning permission due to Rent Pressure Zone changes Opens in new window ] The legislation was passed in the Dáil on Wednesday and goes to the Seanad on Thursday. Mr O'Sullivan said that 'from the day after the passing of this Bill' with 'enactment by President Higgins ' no rent increase across the country can exceed 2 per cent or the rate of inflation, whichever is lower, with certain exceptions. 'This is an immediate and concrete protection against high rent inflation,' he said. 'We want to provide certainty, clarity and stability for the rental sector,' he said. The new policy measures announced last week to apply from next March aim to boost investment in the supply of homes. Legislation will be introduced later this year to give effect to reforms announced last week which will apply from March 2026 when rents for new tenancies can be set at market value. But Sinn Féin housing spokesman Eoin Ó Broin described the Government's proposals as an 'utter shambles' and 'an assault on renters' who will be the losers. He hit out at the 'haphazard, ramshackle, back-of-the-envelope process' for widespread reforms that will affect 'tens of thousands of people'. Mr Ó Broin said that 'in the best-case scenario' there will only be 'a modest increase in the levels of institutional investment in high-end, high-cost, private rental cost developments'. 'The consequence of this is that renters everywhere will pay a cost,' because '80 per cent of current renters are in tenancies of six months or less' and 'the idea that somehow existing renters are protected is simply not true'. Labour spokesman Conor Sheehan who called for a two-year rent freeze, said the Government's measures 'will, in the round, cause rents to increase again'. The proposals last week 'very nearly caused a run on the rental market'. He added it is 'very clear what the priority is here because investors will not be negatively impacted by these changes but renters will'. Under the proposals 'we will return to a situation in this country whereby people will be evicted from their properties because they cannot pay the rent'. Social Democrats spokesman Rory Hearne said it is 'quite a cruel move' to give renters the RPZ for six or seven months 'and then rip it away from them', next March. When their tenancy ends or the landlord decides to sell the property in six years' time 'they will face market rents and a rental system and a housing market that will be even more unaffordable'. He said 'the Government is taking a gamble, but it is gambling with renters' lives, betting on the likelihood that the free market and the investor funds will come through for renters'. Green Party leader Roderic O'Gorman called on the Minister to tie rent caps to the property and not just to the lease. In this way 'students returning to the same room are not charged new market rent each year'. There should be a legal definition for student tenancy 'allowing academic year leases to be regulated in line with their unique situation'. These are not 'radical asks' but 'practical adjustments that would make this legislation better'.
The Guardian
30-05-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
Irish whale-watching company ends tours on south Atlantic coast and blames overfishing
A whale-watching company has abandoned tours off Ireland's southern Atlantic coast and declared the waters an empty, lifeless sea. Colin Barnes, who ran Cork Whale Watch, announced he was closing the company because overfishing of sprat has disrupted the marine food chain and diverted humpback, minke and fin whales as well as dolphins. 'Sadly, our world-class whale watching is now a thing of the past,' Barnes said in a post this week. 'A small number of greedy fishermen with huge trawlers have overfished the sprats to the point of near extinction. There is nothing left for the whales to prey upon so they have moved on in search of prey elsewhere.' The company, based in the coastal village of Unionhall, also known as Union Hall, had thrived for most of its 25 years, but only a few minke whales and small groups of dolphins now appeared in its search area, he said. 'Over the last couple of years our trips have become totally disappointing. In this light I am truly sad to say we are closing down for good.' The announcement prompted a public outcry and a promise from the government to do more to protect fish stocks and marine biodiversity. 'We have to introduce measures to protect this forage species – not just for whales, but for all the other fish stocks and wildlife that depend on it – to prevent the collapse of an entire food web,' Christopher O'Sullivan, the minister responsible for nature and biodiversity, told the Irish Examiner. He said he hoped Ireland would emulate UK curbs on sprat fishing, which were having a positive effect. Demand for fishmeal from fish farms has dramatically increased the fishing of sprats, a small, sardine-like fish that plays a crucial role in the maritime food chain. Sign up to Down to Earth The planet's most important stories. Get all the week's environment news - the good, the bad and the essential after newsletter promotion Mark Gannon, who runs Atlantic Whale and Wildlife Tours from Courtmacsherry, 22 miles east of Unionhall, said the number of whales and dolphins had plummeted since large trawlers began scooping up sprat. 'It's a devastating form of fishing. It's like a farmer taking all the grass out of his fields and expecting his cows to thrive.' However, Gannon said he had invested in a new boat and still offered enthralling excursions, albeit with less wildlife. 'Just today we saw three minke whales,' he said on Friday after a tour. 'Compared to the numbers we had before it's chalk and cheese, but we still have a beautiful coastline. With the right policies, the south of Cork and the west coast of Ireland could be the European capital of marine tourism.' His wife and company co-owner, Trish Gannon, said bookings remained strong. 'I tell people we can guarantee absolutely nothing in terms of sightings and they're still happy to go out.' Patrick Murphy, the chief executive of the Irish South and West Fish Producer's Organisation, said warming waters appeared to be pushing sprat further west and north – where sprat catches have risen sharply – and this accounted for the dwindling whale sightings off Cork. 'We are asking for a proper scientific assessment for this species, so a proper management policy can be developed to ensure the continued sustainability of this important fishery,' he said.
