Brian Leddin (Limerick City, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

First, I commend my Green Party colleague, Deputy Matthews, on bringing forward this Bill. It says something that it is a Green Party Deputy who is introducing this Bill. It speaks to the seriousness that the issue is taken by our party. It also says something that so many Green Party Deputies have turned up to speak on this. It is something we are very serious about in our party because we want to see our towns, villages and our cities, and the buildings in them, brought back to life. It is no surprise that Deputy Matthews brought the Bill forward because he is certainly one of the hardest working and most serious Deputies in this Chamber. I think colleagues will agree.

I acknowledge the work being done by the Government and of which the Minister of State spoke. Very significant work is being done by this Government to address dereliction and this Bill will supplement that work. The Minister of State is very serious about the issue also.

He mentioned that in our own home city of Limerick, so much good work is being done to address dereliction. Limerick is actually the standout local authority in the country, but perhaps it is the exception that proves the rule, and it is fair to say that local authorities across the country are not doing the level of work that we are seeing in Limerick. It is not all good in Limerick either and, at the risk of a Limerick lament, there have been some notable examples of dropped balls there, and I will refer to a few very sad losses of architectural heritage. Dereliction and heritage go hand in hand, sadly, and many old heritage buildings have been lost, are being lost and will be lost unless we implement the kinds of measures that are laid out in this Bill. I agree with Deputy Costello that if the Minister of State could seek to address some of them in the short term through circulars to local authorities, that would be a very positive move.

Curragower House was only down the road from where I live and it was demolished overnight. It was a property that had stood on the banks of the River Shannon for more than two centuries. Bizarrely, it was not on the derelict sites register, nothing was done about it and, ultimately, it was levelled. There was a beautiful building at the top of Thomas Street, which the Minister of State will have known, and which was levelled to provide three or four car parking spaces. It had the very unusual Dutch Billy façade that was prominent in Limerick city, and there are very few remaining examples. I inquired about Limerick Boat Club, a wonderful sporting institution in our city. The roof of Limerick Boat Club blew off in the storm of 2013 and the club was very frustrated in getting help from Limerick City and County Council. The council did not put that on the derelict sites register at the time. To commend the people in Limerick Boat Club, they raised funds and put a new roof on the beautiful building, which was built in 1870, and it is now a working boat club again and a gem in the heart of Limerick city.

Others have spoken about the importance of embodied carbon. The Minister of State said earlier that the most climate-friendly building is the one that exists. We have to look at our buildings through that lens, figure out how we put a value on our existing buildings, support those who own them and press local authorities so we get the renovation of these buildings in our towns, villages and cities. There are thousands and thousands of them and so much work to be done.

While it is outside the detail of this Bill, something we should discuss is the power of good public realm investment to stimulate refurbishment and renovation of our derelict building stock. I spoke earlier today with the Tánaiste and asked for his support for major investment in Limerick's medieval spine, from King John's Castle all the way up to St. John's Hospital. The Englishtown and Irishtown of medieval times were built around Nicholas Street, Mary Street, where my constituency office is located and where the old town hall of Limerick was in the Middle Ages, Broad Street and John Street. They are in a very dilapidated state. We have to acknowledge there is real value on those streets. We have to lean into it and invest in the public realm. Maybe we could do this through the urban regeneration and development fund, URDF. It is remiss of the local authority that it has not sought to do so because it is a huge opportunity for our city. As this Bill goes through the Houses, we might see how we can link in investment in the public realm because that has a very positive effect on stimulating refurbishment of our old building stock.

I again commend Deputy Matthews on bringing forward the Bill. It is incredibly important to be here on the last day of the term, late on a Thursday. Unfortunately, many of our colleagues have gone home but this is a very serious matter. I hope the Minister of State can support it in the short term but also as it goes through the Houses.

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