Dáil debates

Thursday, 7 May 2020

Covid-19 (Housing, Planning and Local Government): Statements

 

Photo of Eoghan MurphyEoghan Murphy (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I do not like to comment on matters unless I have had a proper chance to think them through so I might not respond as directly as I would like to on the matters the Deputy raised about the banks. I made a comment to Deputy Ó Ríordáin about my experience with the banks in the banking inquiry where they told us their culture had changed and what subsequently emerged had been happening in the banks. The Deputy's suggestion of referring what is happening to the Irish Banking Culture Board is an interesting one and I would be interested to see the board's reply.

One of the things I was determined to do when we were looking at the Rebuilding Ireland home loan was to make sure that mortgage break would not come at a cost to the borrower. On the basis that we have been able to make that arrangement through the local authority lending system, it will not come at a cost, even if we have a six-month extension. That is good news for people who have come through the Rebuilding Ireland home loan scheme. There is a lot more money available and people should continue to apply for the loan because it is a real help in getting people affordable mortgages and into affordable homes.

On empty houses, the previous Dáil established a rolling fund for the Housing Agency. I may have referred to the Housing Agency as the Housing Alliance earlier, which is a different body, but I meant to refer to the Housing Agency. Off the top of my head, I believe the rolling fund amounted to €70 million. I have spoken to the CEO, John O'Connor, on many occasions and he has been doing a deep dive into the books of the banks to see what vacant properties on their books - they are vacant because they are in the banks and they have not been sold, dealt with or unencumbered - could be taken. A number of properties have been taken. I do not have an up-to-date figure on how many have been taken to date but there was a lot more potential to use the rolling fund to get those vacant properties back into use.

Another related matter we have been looking into is strengthening the compulsory purchase order, CPO, powers of local authorities so that they can compulsorily purchase a vacant property, not necessarily for social housing but to sell on at an affordable price to someone who may be looking to buy a home but may not be able to avail of social housing. Any mechanism to release vacant housing, whether it be for social, affordable or private housing, should be used. That option is under consideration and it is something we would have liked to have done previously but we did not get around to it in the lifetime of the last Government. Bank-led vacancy, as we used to refer to it, is very important. I will get an update from the Housing Agency on the figures, how much of the rolling fund it has spent, how many houses it has secured and how much it thinks is left.

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