James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Legislation on compulsory purchase orders needs to be upgraded and strengthened. I come straight from the front line, as it were, having dealt with this issue extensively as a member of Kildare County Council until my election to the Dáil three months ago. There appears to be great reluctance among local authorities to utilise the powers available to them. While I have heard many reasons for not using compulsory purchase orders, I have heard few reasons to use them. The existing derelict sites legislation gives local authorities powers to act. Dublin City Council appears to be better than other local authorities in this regard, having expressed an intention to intervene. Other councils require ministerial direction to move them towards taking action.

In the same vein, if we are using a carrot and stick approach and the use of a compulsory purchase order is the stick, the carrot must be the introduction of a rates incentive. I suggest the Department consider this possibility. When I tabled a proposal for a rates incentive in Kildare County Council I was informed that while my proposal could be sent to the Department, not one suggestion sent to the Department by any local authority in the past 30 years had been approved. That does not seem to be a great way to do business. I call on the Minister to examine the possibility of using rates incentives to encourage people to invest in revitalising vacant buildings and developing accommodation in them.

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