Spiralling rents and living costs show folly of united Ireland: MP Gregory Campbell

The East Londonderry MP pointed to a new report by a Trinity College Dublin economist detailing the current rental hikes in southern Irish cities as evidence that people in Northern Ireland are better off remaining in the UK.

The latest Rental Report by Ronan Lyons, associate professor of economics at Trinity, found that the national average rent for a two-bed property in the Republic is now £1,269 per month.

Latest reports in Northern Ireland indicate that the average rent is £700 per month.

In Dublin the Trinity economist’s report showed that the average rent in Dublin is £1,398 per month while in Cork it is £1,069.

The report also found that even in rural Co Donegal, which has the lowest rentals in the Republic, the rate is still accelerating fast as average rents have risen over the past year by 24%.

Mr Campbell (pictured) said the disparities between rental costs on either side of the border alongside the cost of keeping a family of four in the Republic – £3,971 per month – meant the South was the third most expensive country in western Europe.

“Sinn Fein and others who advocate breaking up the United Kingdom naively believe that Northern Ireland’s people would be better off if republican dreams were realised. The facts of many aspects of life in the Republic of Ireland paint a remarkably different picture,” the DUP MP said.

He added: “These enormous rental costs should help concentrate the minds of those ‘dreamers’ as they come to terms with the real world.”