Michael Collins (Cork South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am sharing time with Deputy Mattie McGrath. I sincerely hope this plan will, as its name suggests, deliver housing for all. Such delivery is badly needed in this country. We have a housing crisis throughout our cities and we certainly have a massive crisis in west Cork. Last Friday, 12 people came into my clinic in Bandon, seven of whom have a housing issue. Two of them are homeless.

This new thing of couch-surfing is very popular now in west Cork. I only heard about it in the past six or seven months. Although housing has always been an issue, the problem is growing and I do not see a solution to it. I sincerely hope there is a solution.

I do not like to condemn something until it is given time to work but we certainly need to look at the current housing situation in towns and villages such as Ballinadee, Ballinspittle, Goleen and Ballydehob in west Cork. There are fabulous places to live in these towns and fabulous opportunities that have never been developed. Why are grants not being given to get people living over shops or pubs? There should be grants for people who want to develop their town or village but cannot afford to do so right now. Consideration should be given to grants for people who own derelict houses. If those people avail of a grant in respect of the derelict property, then, obviously, they must let the house afterwards. They should be given tax relief if they do so. That is how we can get the system up and running but it has not been done up to now.

I have been very critical of the planning regulations, rules and laws that are in place because planning is a no-go area in west Cork. There are young people who want to build a home on the family farm and help to rebuild rural communities but they are not being allowed to do so for silly and nonsensical reasons. The whole thing needs to be shredded. Local authorities and local planning rules will have to be changed completely.

In west Cork, people are trying to work from home and get their lives together through this damn pandemic. In fairness, the local mobile phone company, Three Ireland, put up a new mast in Gaggan, near Bandon. The Department has encouraged the erection of little masts to provide broadband. However, the planning authority in Cork County Council has now decided it wants the mast pulled down. It is an insane situation. One cannot even see the masts in Gaggan, just outside Bandon town. A significant number of people will be insane about this when it is revealed that the local planning authority has turned down the mast. The decision has gone to appeal before An Bord Pleanála. The whole point I am trying to make is that anywhere I drive in Dublin city, there are masts everywhere. I have no issue with that. That is the way it has to be because life has to progress. The mast near Bandon could not be seen but the planning authority decided to object to it. We are in a dire situation in respect of planning and somebody in the Government needs to wake up. If we want people to return to rural communities and live there, the Government has to decide to change the planning rules.

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