Ms Isoilde Dillon:

As part of the vacant housing strategy we carried out research on what was happening internationally. We particularly focused on the UK because it has been actively engaged and it has been a priority for the past 25 years to look at vacant properties. In England there is a 2.5% vacancy rate. Many of the councils in England have their own action plans and much of the work done on vacant homes is based within the councils. Many of the councils have empty homes officers.

For example, Kent has a so-called "No Use Empty" scheme, which is a support mechanism for the local authorities there. The "No Use Empty" scheme supports home owners and councils, and it administers grants. Councils in England can also apply an increase in the property tax.

In Scotland the housing charity, Shelter, runs the Scottish empty homes partnership. That provides advice and support to owners and local councils, and it administers loans. It also very effectively operates a networking scheme that has buy-in from the local councils. Shelter claims that 80% of homes in Scotland have been brought back through the use of advice and support given either through Shelter or directly by the councils, which is significant.

In Wales all local authorities are obliged to have action plans and identify targets. Wales has a house to homes scheme offering interest-free loans for a period of two to three years. Private owners can apply for such a loan to bring homes back into use. That seems to have been very effective. Empty Homes Wales is an organisation that supports home owners. Other actions in Wales include a VAT reduction on materials for owners doing up vacant homes. Interestingly in Wales many of the grant schemes are tied into providing added value. For example, there are grant schemes that help first-time buyers to buy vacant properties and also to improve the sustainability of properties.

The lesson to be learned from that is that it is a holistic approach, with the emphasis on providing information. It is about identifying vacant homes and providing support to owners. In certain cases they have a number of grants available and in exceptional cases they bring in enforcements. That type of holistic approach will inform the strategy.