Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The scheme is a really good one. All present know from walking through rural towns and villages that there are derelict houses in them. A bit of encouragement would bring people back to living in the centre of towns and villages. It is welcome that the scheme has been extended to rural houses. I acknowledge that. The Minister for housing, Local Government and Heritage was committed to the scheme from day one. We had conversations about it and it is very welcome.

As regards our engagement with local authorities, we recently published Town Centre First, a major new policy that aims to tackle vacancy, combat dereliction and breathe new life into town centres. Town Centre First contains 33 unique actions which will give towns the tools and resources they need to become more viable and attractive places to visit, live, work and run a business. The policy is underpinned by multibillion euro investment spread across major Government schemes such as the RRDF, the urban regeneration and development fund, the Croí Cónaithe towns fund and the town and village scheme. For the first time, designated towns will gain their own dedicated town regeneration officers, who will be crucial in driving future development.

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