Carol Nolan (Laois-Offaly, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the witnesses for their presentations and observations. It is important that we hear, from their perspectives, what needs to be tightened up or what needs to change or improve with these schemes. I regard that as constructive and welcome. I take the point that the help-to-buy scheme needs to be extended to cover derelict property. That would be a major help. I know that the programme for Government mentions depopulation and revitalising rural Ireland. As one of the most rural Deputies, I look out at a bog at one end and a forest at the other in rural County Offaly. I welcome and support anything that helps rural Ireland. I feel there are a lot of positives with the scheme and I have had calls about the different grants. I welcome the involvement of county councils around the country, including my own in Offaly and the other one in Laois, in terms of rollout and assistance. Certainly that is all welcome, but this is only part of the solution to rural housing.

Every year I, along with other midlands Deputies and Senators, like Senator Daly and others who were here earlier, meet IBEC. It tells us that housing is holding back rural regions. If we are ever to achieve rural or regional balance, housing is where we are falling down. We are failing farm families where they want a son or daughter to help out on the farm. The bigger picture is also regional balance, and we are losing out there because there is not enough housing.

I welcome any measure that is going to help. These schemes could be improved if we were to take on some of the constructive comments made here today. It is only part of the solution because in County Offaly the vacancy rate is 8.3%.

County Laois is less again at 7.6%. There is a bigger picture and more solutions are needed. The rural planning guidelines need to be published. It is something I have called for. We in the Rural Independent Group had a motion that was voted only on last Wednesday night and that was part of it. I would hope the rural planning guidelines will bring consistency. Our guests have mentioned that. It is very hard to separate this issue from the bigger picture that everybody is coming back with here tonight. The planning issues and An Bord Pleanála not meeting statutory timeframes are all related because it is the bigger picture in terms of rural housing. That certainly needs to improve but we do need to see the rural planning guidelines published. We need to see consistency and fair play. We cannot have a wide open and reckless planning system. We have to have a robust but fair planning system. All we want is fairness in helping future generations of farming families and achieving regional balance. Some very good points have been made here and they need to be worked on.

This scheme and these grants can be improved. It is a little bit of tweaking. They are certainly welcome and will help but they are not the overall solution. In terms of what we can do, would our guests feel that tweaking the grants would improve take-up? We do not know yet but I am receiving calls about the grants and it is positive that people are inquiring. Would a bit of tweaking solve the issues and lead to greater take-up?