Law and Politics editor Michael Keating Dake comments on the outrageous occurences of Irish landlords offering discounted rent in exchange for sexual acts, as the Irish housing crisis grows by the day.
A July report conducted by RTÉ Investigates found that numerous landlords were offering free or discounted accommodation in exchange for sexual favours. The report comes as Ireland faces a growing housing crisis, with over 12,847 people in emergency accommodation as of July 2023, according to figures released by the Department of Housing contained in a report cited by the Irish Examiner.
These shocking revelations expose a sinister power dynamic present within the rental market, and indeed, the current economic system. As landlords consolidate their monopolistic control over access to a fundamental human need: housing, we begin to witness perhaps one of the most grotesque byproducts of the confluence of patriarchy and capitalism. Some landlords have exploited their inordinate economic leverage over increasingly desperate renters, using the fear of homelessness as a mechanism to elicit sexual gratification from the most vulnerable members of the community.
As landlords consolidate their monopolistic control over access to a fundamental human need: housing, we begin to witness perhaps one of the most grotesque byproducts of the confluence of patriarchy and capitalism.
Soliciting sexual favours in lieu of rental payments is technically not a crime in Ireland, despite its clear ethical depravity. A 2022 Bill proposed by Social Democrats TD Cian O'Callaghan which sought to criminalise the practice was stalled at the committee stage in the Oireachtas. In August of this year, Sinn Féin proposed a Bill in the Dáil that would explicitly criminalise the practice under the Residential Tenancies Act. The legislation, if passed, would prohibit the seeking or advertisement of sex in lieu of rent, according to The Journal.
The practice is not unique to Ireland, with British homelessness charity Shelter finding that 59,000 women in the UK were propositioned for sex in exchange for reduced or free rent by landlords between March 2020 and September 2021, as cited in a report by Aoife Hegarty of RTÉ Investigates. A similar survey conducted by the American National Fair Housing Alliance (NFHA) found a 13% increase in complaints of sexual harassment and predatory behaviour being made to housing NGOs by women renters in the US, as reported by Reuters. These trends appear to indicate the prevalence of such exploitative practices across numerous jurisdictions.
Sinn Féin spokesperson on housing policy, Eoin Ó Broin, described the practice as a "disgusting form of predatory behaviour," and called for the introduction of amendments to the Act in order to give "renters, particularly women renters, the protection they rightly deserve," as reported by breakingnews.ie.
Expressing similar sentiments, Minister for Justice, Helen McEntee, condemned those who "prey on vulnerable people," referring to the practice as an "appalling abuse of power." Her Department is currently conducting a review of the Criminal Justice (Sexual Offences) Act 2017, and is expected to examine further legislative proposals in months to come.
Given the power imbalance present between landlords and renters, it is likely that the situation will only deteriorate, unless there is either a massive reversal of current policy trajectory by the Government, or a large-scale mobilisation of working-class communities against this appalling form of material exploitation. Indeed, the situation has been exacerbated by Government policies, including the decision to end the COVID-era eviction ban, the failure to adequately invest in social housing supply, and the failure to ban vulture funds.
Earlier this year, Sally Rooney penned an article in the Irish Times condemning the Government's decision to rescind the moratorium on evictions. The Normal People author eviscerated the coalition's housing policies, describing the "financial toil" and "psychological hardship" experienced by exploited renters. Rooney highlighted the role of tenants' organisations such as CATU (Community Action Tenants Union) in challenging the hegemony of the landlord class.
She also drew attention to previous struggles for tenants' rights throughout Ireland's colonial past, referencing the historic precedent set by the National Land League, founded in 1879. Rooney stated: "If the Government won't stop evictions, we can." Rooney's impassioned call to arms may find resonance in left-wing circles, as the crisis escalates and the Government appears indifferent.
Current Government policy has created a conducive environment for the proliferation of numerous forms of economic exploitation, from commercial profiteering to cowboy landlordism. The only viable solution to this crisis is for a rapid and urgent shift in political trajectory. This will require a dramatic rise in class consciousness among the renting classes.
The only viable solution to this crisis is for a rapid and urgent shift in political trajectory. This will require a dramatic rise in class consciousness among the renting classes.”
Even in the event that legislative changes are introduced, criminalisation alone will not suffice to eradicate the underlying cultural and economic causes of the exploitation experienced by vulnerable renters, particularly female renters. This problem must be addressed with massive urgency. Indeed, the gravity of the present moment calls to mind the words of Rosa Luxmberg: "The most revolutionary thing one can do is always to proclaim loudly what is happening."
In an emergency, DON'T WAIT! Contact the emergency services immediately at 112 or 999.
Women's Aid - 1800 341 900
Dublin Rape Crisis Centre - 1800 77 8888
Focus Ireland - 01 881 5900
Threshold - 1800 454 454
Citizens Information Phone Service - 0818 07 4000
The Residential Tenancies Board and Free Legal Advice Centres also offer a range of support services for renters in vulnerable situations.