Minister for Housing Eoghan Murphy has said it has always been Government policy to introduce tenancies of indefinite duration.
He was responding to questions about new laws which are to be introduced to prevent landlords from evicting tenants without a clear reason.
The minister said the timing of the announcement about the legislation had nothing to do with the upcoming European and Local elections.
Separately, Mr Murphy said the withdrawal of a private developer from a social housing scheme in Co Wexford might be a sign that "the wider housing market was improving" and demand was changing.
He said he had not got the full details of the particular case, but said it was "rare that such a contract would not come to pass".
It came after a developer withdrew from an agreement to provide 36 social housing units at the Hunters Hill estate in Gorey.
The minister was speaking to reporters at the National Housing Conference at Dublin Castle.
Speaking at the same event, President of the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland David Browne said the Government should consider an integrated plan to subsidise the renting or purchasing of housing.
Mr Browne said this could be done through part-ownership programmes, through expanding the rent subsidy to include a broader range of workers, and by delivering "cost rental housing at scale and speed".
He said the "densification" of urban areas could improve quality of life for residents.
