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

A lot of work is being done across government to bring vacant and derelict buildings back into use. I am very much in favour of the bottom-up approach. That is why we have the town centre first officers. They will engage with the different stakeholders in the towns to get a unified approach, decide what their priorities are and get the applications in. In my Department, the focus is on utilising those buildings that are not really suitable for housing and can be converted for community use. I introduced the buildings acquisitions measure. We gave funding to local authorities to purchase the buildings which they identified with local groups that could be converted for community use. We all know that lots of things can be done with these old buildings, whether it be for Men's Sheds or local community groups that want facilities and meeting rooms. They can also be used as enterprise centres and remote working hubs.

See this speech in context