A Government report says enforcement of basic standards in rented accommodation needs to be improved following figures which show that up to half of all registered dwellings are sub-standard.
Inspections by local authorities repeatedly show high failure rates in rented accommodation which do not meet basic standards for structural stability, access to hot and cold water and ventilation.
The figures are contained in a review of housing policy commissioned by the Government. The report's authors are Ms Nessa Winston, of UCD's department of social policy and social work, and Ms Michelle Morris, of the Housing Unit.
Latest figures show that of 4,703 inspections last year, 1,753 private rented units (33 per cent) failed to meet basic standards in 2003. The failure rate was 50 per cent in 2002, and 53 per cent in 2001. The authors say the high failure rate may be due to low registration rates among landlords and low inspection levels by local authorities.
The report recommends the Government draw up a strategy to promote improvement in accommodation standards, including more rigorous enforcement of standards legislation.
A spokesman for the Minister for the Environment and Local Government, Mr Roche, conceded that the proportion of accommodation failing to meet basic standards was high. However, he said latest figures showed there were substantial improvements.
"It's getting better. A number of factors are helping to improve compliance rates. These include the supply of rented accommodation, which gives tenants greater choice, and the Private Residential Tenancies Board, which provides a dispute resolution service for landlords and tenants."
Threshold, the national housing organisation, said it seemed local authorities were not taking their role of monitoring accommodation seriously.
"Local authorities aren't resourced properly. Minimum standards should be implemented in full, particularly at the lower end," said Mr Patrick Burke, of Threshold.
The Housing Policy Review also made a number of other suggestions relating to the provision of social housing, accommodation for the homeless and housing for people with special needs.
It says mechanisms used to assess the number of homeless people should be reviewed to determine whether they were providing accurate figures.
It also recommends a review of the effectiveness of schemes to enable people on low incomes to afford a house. It said six separate schemes have been launched since 1990, indicating that they have had mixed success.