John Cummins (Fine Gael)
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In the case of living over a shop, for example, it is commonly pointed out it is very hard to apply current regulations to older buildings and that that is an impediment to bringing a lot of these buildings back into use. Mr. Keeley and Mr. Nestor might like to comment on that. We have seen excellent examples in my county, Waterford, through the repair and leasing scheme and so on, which have brought these older buildings back into use. Is there a case to be made for compartmentalisation in older buildings where there are short distances to exits without reaching the gold standard? I know we have to be mindful of safety but is there a different way by which we can address vacancy in older buildings? As I said, our guests are the experts and we are here to listen.