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

First, I want to clarify, from the HSE CEO's memo of 10 November, that the recruitment freeze does not apply to consultants, graduate nurses and doctors or anyone who has been given a formal offer already. That runs until the end of the year and next year, the HSE can hire an additional 2,000 staff, and that will include nurses and midwives.

In relation to vacancy, the approach we are taking is one of carrot and stick. We are providing grants to people to renovate old buildings and bring them back to life. There is enormous take-up on that, which is very encouraging. There is also a fund of €150 million for local authorities to purchase derelict buildings and bring them back into use.

On the flip side, we have the vacant property tax and the derelict sites levy. That puts a cost on people who leave properties vacant or derelict.

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