The private rental inspection processes currently used by local authorities are unacceptably low, a new report has found.

The National Oversight and Audit Commission (NOAC) published the findings of the Local Authority Performance Indicator Report 2018. It found that out of 322,230 registered tenancies in 2018, only 23,824 homes were inspected.

A Sinn Féin representative has expressed concern at the report, with data varying greatly from area to area.

Explaining the lack of consistency, Deputy Eoin Ó Broin said: "For example, in Carlow, 10% of the private rented homes were inspected and 95% of these homes were found to be non-compliant with standards regulations.

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"However, in Cavan 20% of the rental stock was inspected and only 29.5% of these homes were found not to be compliant with standards.

"Galway City only inspected 1.8% of registered rental properties and 99% of these were non-compliant with standards.

"The report also indicates that in all of the nine local authorities with more than 10,000 tenancies only two local authorities, Fingal and South Dublin, reached inspections rates of over 10%."

Deputy Ó Broin has called on the government to prioritise the allocation of greater resources for Local Authorities, so they can move towards inspecting at a minimum 25% of rental properties per year.

He added: "€4.5m in funding was allocated by central government for this purpose for 2019 and in the first months of the year €1.8m, for 40% of the funding available, was paid to local authorities.

"Sinn Féin in our Alternative Budget for 2020 has allocated an additional €5m in funding to help local authorities to move towards the 25% target more quickly than the government's proposed timeline of 2021.

"More and more people are living in the private rented sector and we need to ensure that these home meet minimum standards. Local authorities must be adequately resourced to conduct these duties."

(CM/MH)