Ciarán Cannon (Galway East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Croí Cónaithe scheme whereby people are supported to refurbish derelict buildings to make them available for homes has been especially successful. An additional concession was made recently to extend that scheme to rural villages and rural locations across the country. Again, that has been successful and a lot of interest has been developed. However, an additional restriction has been placed on that scheme that we should seriously consider removing. That is the restriction whereby, if people take up the grant and refurbish a building, they are obliged to use it as their principal private residence. If we opened the opportunity that all of these buildings, as they are being refurbished, can be used as either a private residence or within the rental market locally, first, it would be another powerful lever to have many vacant buildings throughout the country, particularly in rural Ireland, reinstated and used as homes for people. Second, it would drive vitality and energy into rural towns and villages, similar to what Deputy Mattie McGrath mentioned earlier. It is an additional concession we should consider making.

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