Seanad debates
Thursday, 9 May 2024
Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters
Commercial Rates
9:30 am
Tim Lombard (Fine Gael)
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The Minister of State is more than welcome and I thank him for coming to the House. This matter is on the need for the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to make a statement regarding the application for an exemption from commercial rates for community swimming pool projects. He knows where I am from. Cork South-West has a beautiful coastline. The need for our people to learn to swim is significant. We need to make sure we have all the tools that are available, including making all our swimming pools available to teach kids to swim. Getting lessons is a big issue.
I had the pleasure and privilege of going to a community-run swimming pool down in Baltimore. It is a lovely part of the world. The location of the swimming pool is very peripheral. The big issue is that even though it is community run, it has a rates bill of €6,700 a year. The pool is run by the community and is not for profit. The history of this complex is just amazing. In 2019, the community took it over after the previous owner went out of business. The community came together, fundraised, took the project on board and made the swimming pool open to the public seven days a week. It is an exemplary project, with community spirit all the way through. That part of the world now has a complex that can cater to the needs of young and old, from Cope Foundation and CoAction all the way up to swimming lessons for kids, schools, secondary schools are all using this complex. The biggest problem is that it is trying to survive in a regime where the local authority is levying a rates bill on it of €6,700 a year. The community owners have no way around it. The nearest competition to them is a council swimming pool in Dunmanway, which has no rates because it is run by Cork County Council. I am dealing with quite a bizarre situation here. We are trying to make sure people have the opportunity to learn to swim and get into the pool. It is a model we could look at across the entire country. We have had campaigns to get swimming pools into places like Bandon, the biggest town in the south west, which has no pool. We have a wonderful complex in this wonderful part of the world. It got through Covid and all the issues regarding energy bills, Covid restrictions and everything else. If it closes, it will be because the local authority is going to levy a rate of €6,700 on it. I could not make it up. It is an absolute joke in so many ways. It is far from the Minister of State's fault.
What we need here is an intervention. We need to make sure Government is going to look on community-run complexes like this in a special way to make sure they are viable going forward. The local authority needs to change its approach, particularly in respect of the rates element. At the moment they community owners are pushing the council to get re-rated and so on. They are going nowhere. It really will not happen unless the Minister for local government steps into the arena to say we need to more to protect community-run complexes like this.
My plea this morning is very clear. We need Government to look at these individual community-run pool complexes, and make them rate-exempt so they can be viable going forward and so we can have the benefit for the entire community. I would love the Minister of State to come down to Baltimore some day to look at this beautiful complex. It is community run and not for profit. It would not be seen it anywhere in the world. It is a wonderful example of what we can do in Irish society. He is more than welcome to come down and look at this. The more people I show this project to, the more people say it is something we need to protect.This is one of the really important elements of community involvement we need to protect if we possibly can.
Ossian Smyth (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party)
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I thank the Senator for asking this question, which the Minister for housing has asked me to answer on his behalf. Tailte Éireann is the State agency formed on 1 March 2023 following the merger of Ordnance Survey Ireland, the Property Registration Authority and the Valuation Office. All the functions previously carried by those bodies are now being performed by Tailte Éireann. Tailte Éireann is independent of its valuation functions under the Valuation Act 2001, as amended, and the Minister has no function in decisions in this regard.
The Act provides that all buildings used or developed for any purpose are rateable, unless expressly exempted under Schedule 4 to the Act. As a matter of course, Tailte Éireann examines all properties on their individual merits by reference to the relevant statutory provisions governing the operation of the Valuation Acts. Subsections 4A and 4B of Schedule 4 provide for exemptions for property used exclusively for community sport and otherwise than for profit. It is understood from Tailte Éireann that an organisation seeking exemption must apply in each case, by way of a revision application to Tailte Éireann valuation. The statutory fee for such an application is €250. Tailte Éireann valuation will then consider the applicability, or not, of the claim for exemption under Schedule 4 to the Act.
There are a number of avenues of redress for an occupier of rateable property who is dissatisfied with a determination of valuation made under the provisions of the Valuation Act 2001, as amended. Before a determination is made, there is a right to make representations to Tailte Éireann on a proposed valuation. Later in the process, if the occupier is still dissatisfied with the determination, there is a right of appeal to the Valuation Tribunal which is an independent body set up for the purpose of hearing appeals against determinations of Tailte Éireann. There is a right of appeal to the higher courts on a point of law. Oireachtas Members may obtain information about specific cases by contacting the dedicated e-mail address in respect of Tailte Éireann at oireachtas@tailte.ie. An organisation itself may contact Tailte Éireann in respect of specific cases by emailing valuationadmin@tailte.ie.
Tim Lombard (Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister of State for his comprehensive response regarding the process we must go through to try to ensure common sense prevails when it comes to this issue. That is what we are trying to do here. Common sense must prevail when we are looking at a community-run project of this nature that has such a benefit to the entire community. The way swimming pools are rated is an issue we probably need to start looking at on a national policy level. We need to have more swimming pools and more swimming lessons. I have had people contact me to say they could get tickets for the Bruce Springsteen concerts faster than they can get swimming lessons for their kids. We need to ensure swimming pool complexes are more attractive for investors. The rates applied to swimming pool complexes need to be looked at because we have to get kids into swimming pools to teach them a skill for life. The Government needs to change its approach by promoting activities in the water and ensuring everyone can swim.
Perhaps the Minister of State or Minister will have an opportunity to visit Baltimore some day and see the wonderful swimming pool complex. It is a wonderful example of a community working hard to provide something society needs, namely, a swimming pool. This is a debate we need to have as a country. At some stage, the Minister of State may find time in his diary to come down to Baltimore. It is a beautiful part of the world, as he knows. We will show him a wonderful complex but we will also show him what we need, which is a slight change in approach to ensure complexes like this are viable going forward.
Ossian Smyth (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party)
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I thank the Senator. I think I have good news for him. The message from the Valuation Office is that community sports facilities which are exclusively used for community sport and are non-profit are exempt from rates. I encourage him to follow up with the Valuation Office or Tailte Éireann using the contact details I provided.
The Senator mentioned that we need to look more broadly at the rating policy for swimming pools. I agree and I advise him to take the matter up with the Minister, Deputy O'Brien. He makes a great point.
I have made an effort to visit every county in Ireland as frequently as I can. It is very important that Ministers and Ministers of State are not stuck in Dublin getting a single perspective on the country from here. I would love to visit west Cork. I appreciate the Senator's offer and I will check if I am ever free to visit Baltimore. I have only been there on holiday in the past but if I can combine business with leisure, it would be fantastic.