Frank Feighan (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome many of the ideas in this Bill. As a retailer I am aware that the main streets of our towns and villages are becoming like the high streets in the United Kingdom. When I joined the local authority in 1999 there was a simplistic view that every business was making a fortune and that one could increase the rates every year by an extra 1% or 2% and nobody would notice. I said at the time that there would be far fewer businesses throughout the country in the future and, unfortunately, that has come to pass. About six years ago I re-evaluated that and stated that there would be only bookmaker shops and hairdressing salons in many of our main streets. Things have moved on, however, in that many bookmaker shops are now under pressure because one can have an app on one's phone on which one can gamble 24 hours a day. The hairdressing salons have moved away from the main street and, unfortunately, many of them have moved into the black economy, working out of their own homes. There are now many charity shops in our main streets, which are nice to walk around and make great money for the charities, but we need to achieve the right balance in that regard.

We will never be in the position we were in previously, when the local butcher, the baker and the newsagent, which I was, were located on the main street of a town or village. We now have the major shopping centres in which Tesco, Lidl and Aldi are located, and regardless of whether I agree with them, they are here to stay. People will travel to those for convenience and to get value over a range of goods. That is the position, but that is not to say there is no future in retailing or in the town centre structures.

I am aware of a local newsagent who began to sell piggy-banks, for want of a better word, which one could use to save for weddings, birthdays and so on. The footfall on the street for that product would be limited, but he had a Facebook page on which he sold more of those piggy-banks in one day than he sold in a year in the shop. That is where the innovation is coming in, but we must keep the costs down.

It is ridiculous that in smaller towns in Roscommon, for example - although I am sure it is no different throughout the country - one will rent out a property almost for nothing to get somebody into it, but half of the year's rental goes towards rates. I accept that the Minister is examining this. That is unsustainable and it is a cumbersome way of dealing with the issue. I am aware that discussions are ongoing, but that must be dealt with if we want to get people to move into vacant premises around the country.

There are many good ideas in the Bill, but I have difficulty with the establishment of another structure. We have far too many structures, and establishing another one would lead to much confusion. There is a great deal of change taking place in local authorities. I welcome the fact that many of the agencies are moving into local authorities. I agree with the revitalisation of town centres, but the creation of additional structures is an issue I have with the Bill.

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