Key urban areas across Ireland have more short-term lets than long-term available, new research has revealed.

The new Threshold figures have sparked a call for urgent government attention to help address landlords who appear to be circumventing planning permission rules.

Calling for an increase in local authorities to tackle the issue, Labour representative Rebecca Moynihan said: "With a lack of local authority inspectors on the ground, we know that some properties are being used as unauthorised short-term lets. With unaffordable rents driving people into homelessness, we must ensure that the very basics of housing policy are in place. Government must commit to increasing local authority inspectors to ensure that properties are being used for their intended purposes.

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"We need better transparency in the rental market to address the current power imbalance between renters and landlords. Labour's Renters' Rights Bill would amend the private residential tenancies register to provide full clarity for renters about the dwelling – including the number and duration of previous tenancies, any refurbishment works which may have been undertaken.

"While we wait to see the impact of Housing for All on the market, there are some fundamental gaps that need to be addressed by this government to level the playing field for renters. Despite renters accounting for a huge proportion of households in Ireland, they remain among the most vulnerable.

"The patchwork effort by Government is not helping renters, and shows the ongoing failure to address the core problems of soaring rents and lack of security in their tenancies. Government must ensure the fundamentals are in place so that homes are not seen as investment opportunities."