The government has been accused of "failing renters" after research published by Savills revealed rents are still continuing to rise.

Sinn Féin spokesperson on Housing Eoin Ó Broin TD called on Minster for Housing Simon Coveney to make rent certainty a key component of his overdue strategy.

He said: "There was nothing in last week’s budget that offered relief to struggling renters, as Minister Coveney chose to instead forge ahead with his misguided 'Help to Buy' scheme.

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"On the same day, the Minister spun the figures on his housing budget in the Dáil chamber, Fine Gael, supported by their colleagues Fianna Fáil in the Seanad, voted down Sinn Féin’s Rent Certainty Bill. This Bill would have provided rent certainty to both tenants and landlords by linking rent increases and decreases with the CPI. This Bill, which could have saved renting families up to €2,000 per year, was opposed by Minister Coveney and Deputy Barry Cowen, when it was tabled it in the Dáil last June.

"What the Minister fails to see is that an increase in the supply of real social housing not only meets the needs of those on Council waiting lists but reduces the pressure on the private rental and purchase markets."

(CD)