Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

As the Deputy knows, the help-to-buy scheme, as it is currently constituted, is only for new-build properties, which include own-build homes, including in rural areas. It is designed to encourage the provision of more new builds that are affordable for first-time buyers. The suggestion has been made by the Deputy, as well as Deputy Griffin and others, that we should extend the scheme to cover vacant properties that are brought back into use. I think there is some sense in that. I see a lot of properties around the country that could be turned into homes and, potentially, we could use the help-to-buy scheme to encourage people to do exactly that. It would make sense from a climate point of view as well to reuse an existing building rather than building a new one. However, there is potentially an alternative way of doing it, which is through a grant system. We are looking at the two options at the moment and we hope to make a decision in the next couple of months.

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