Thomas Gould (Cork North-Central, Sinn Fein)

I will go back to the point made earlier by Ms Murphy on the consequences of vacancy and dereliction for communities.

Maybe the four witnesses might want to comment. I can see the dereliction. I live on Cathedral Road, Shandon, which is the most historic spine that runs all the way down to North Main Street and all the way up to Barrack Street. What should be an iconic and historic part of Cork was just let fall asunder. Some buildings have now been bought by compulsory purchase order, CPO, but more needs to be done. If you went to North Main Street your heart would sink when you would look at the condition. Similarly, in Blackpool, if you walk up Blackpool you will see Tomás Mac Curtain's shop. He was a former Lord Mayor of Cork who was shot by the Black and Tans. There is Terence MacSwiney who died in Brixton Prison on hunger strike. There is the history associated with old coopers and mills in the area. We should make these areas into a heritage hub that runs across the historic spine of Cork. Instead, these areas have been left in a state of dereliction and vacancy. I walked that spine with the city manager of Cork ten years ago and it is nearly as bad now as it was then.

A point was made that the reasons people hold on to properties is complicated. I think it is immoral and wrong for someone to sit on a property for ten, 15, 20, 30 or 40 years and let it rot. I do not believe a person has the right to do that when we are in the middle of a housing crisis. I also think the CPO laws, which we discussed in the session beforehand, have to be tougher. Can Ms Murphy comment?