Hundreds of council tenants to see their rents double

Hundreds of Cork County Council tenants will see their rents more than double as the local authority moves to standardise a countywide minimum rate.

It wants to increase the minimum rent to €25 per week and use the extra income to modernise its housing stock.

The scheme has been adopted in the South Cork area but is to be extended into the North and West divisions. The minimum in North Cork is €12 a week and €20 in West Cork.