Alan Dillon (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I have been banging the drum about dereliction since I was elected and it could make a real difference in bringing people back to our streets outside normal business hours. In Mayo we have seen much-needed funding coming on stream, such as the urban and rural regeneration funding in Castlebar and Westport. It would also be very useful to see such funding have a greater emphasis on putting vacant units back into residential use.

Dereliction is a scourge on the areas it infests. Considering our efforts to boost housing supply, we really need to put in place solutions to this matter. I have heard all the excuses surrounding cost concerns, fire escape concerns and noise but I have seen very little in developing solutions for these problems. We really need to equip our local authorities to tackle this matter and lead the way in bringing vacant units back into use.

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