Thomas Gould (Cork North-Central, Sinn Fein)

I move:

That Dáil Éireann:

notes that: — there are at least 2,656 vacant council homes, excluding Approved Housing Bodies (AHB) homes, across the State, including 776 homes vacant longer than 12 months;

— the National Oversight and Audit Commission Performance Indicator Report 2023, found that the average reletting time was above 33 weeks and cost, on average, €28,347.05;

— this reletting cost represents a 49 per cent increase on costs when compared to 2019;

— central Government have only provided €11,000 per home in 2025, and have only funded the return of 1,900 homes this year;

— the periodic opening of the Voids Programme, and the restriction on local authorities claiming reimbursement, leaves public homes vacant for months even when only minor works are needed;

— over 250,000 maintenance requests were made for local authority owned homes in 2024;

— local authorities have only budgeted on average €347.45 per unit for planned or proactive maintenance; and

— central Government has only provided €67.23 per unit for stock surveys and planned maintenance in 2025, resulting in only €10.1 million this year; further notes that: — these empty homes are an insult to those impacted by the housing crisis, and have a negative impact on the surrounding community;

— the housing maintenance direct labour workforce in local authorities was slashed during austerity, and has never returned to its necessary strength; and

— failure to properly fund the maintenance of homes leaves people living in unsuitable and unsafe conditions, while also increasing the repairs needed to relet homes; and agrees that the Government must: — create a dedicated Department of Housing, with an annual multi-million euro maintenance fund starting in Budget 2026, to allow local authorities recoup the costs of improving and upgrading existing stock, including vacant council homes;

— remove the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage cap on the amount of money that can be recouped by local authorities when bringing vacant council homes back into use;

— ensure that a standard average turnaround time of 12 weeks is met by all local authorities for bringing vacant council homes back into use, including refurbishment works, allocation and tenanting;

— ensure the maximum use of council employed direct labour, for the refurbishment of vacant council homes being relet and that public procurement rules are applied with flexibility to ensure no delays in cases where private contractors are being used for refurbishment works;

— give local authorities the maximum level of delegated sanctions, to proceed with refurbishment works to bring vacant homes back into use without the need for Department approval, and to allow this process to happen year-round;

— address the delays in securing Garda clearance through better coordination between the Gardaí, councils, AHBs and the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage;

— address the delays in local authorities providing nominations to AHB social housing schemes through agreement of a protocol between the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, the City and County Management Association and the Irish Council for Social Housing; and

— the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, must publish a real time report every six months, listing the number of vacant homes in each local authority area and the average length of time these properties are vacant, to track progress in addressing council home vacancy.

In April I submitted a freedom of information request to every single local authority in this State. Last night, I received the latest response, from the 29th local authority to respond to me. The most recent figures show there are now 834 council houses boarded up for longer than a year. The Minister will hear Deputy Daly talk about how in County Kerry houses are boarded up for ten years, Deputy Quinlivan address how in County Limerick there are 220 such homes and Deputies from counties Donegal, Dublin, Wexford and Louth discuss how their communities are crying out for houses. The Minister will also hear solutions. This is a simple solution. It will not solve the housing crisis but for hundreds if not thousands of families it will make a real difference. The families who need these empty homes are in emergency accommodation, are sharing houses between three generations, or are using box bedrooms. The Minister's colleague, Deputy Séamus McGrath, recently told me that if Sinn Féin brought forward solutions, he would support them. I am hoping he and the Minister will vote in favour of this Bill tomorrow because it offers a solution.

We hear criticism all the time from Fianna Fáil but when we come to it with solutions, what does it do? It shoots us down. Why? This will make a real difference for thousands of families. Right now, today, thousands of boarded-up homes cannot be repaired. Does the Minister know why? It is because he and his Government closed the voids return programme, meaning that local authorities do not have the money to renovate those houses. If someone hands back the keys of their house today, it will be boarded up until next year when the Minister’s Department opens the programme again. Does that make sense? Those are the facts. The Minister should not shake his head; I have the facts. Twenty-nine local authorities have now said this about his Department. I am giving him the facts. Each local authority can get a maximum of €11,000 to retrofit a house when the average cost of a retrofit - local authorities have told me this via freedom of information - is more than €26,000. Councils do not have that extra €15,000. The Minister proposing an amendment to my motion is an insult. For the love of God, there are 2,000 families in emergency accommodation tonight and the Minister wants to clap himself and this Government on the back. Has he any shame? What about all the families looking for houses? What about all the children out there? I spoke with a family the other day about a house that has been empty for five years. The house has been retrofitted with brand new windows and insulated walls, but there is a major problem with the stairs and the local authority does not have the money to repair them. The Minister will not give it the money. The house has been idle for five years and that is down to the Minister.

We discussed a stock survey. In the past three years the Government has carried out a stock survey on 6,000 homes. At that pace, it will take the Government 78 years to complete the stock survey, yet the Minister is talking about the preventative maintenance programme his Department is rolling out. He is in cuckoo land. These are the figures. This is what the local authorities are telling me and yet the Minister claps himself on the back and says the Government is great. Does it have any shame? It is a fact that the Government is giving local authorities a maintenance budget of €67.23 for every local authority house.

The Government has given them €67. Will the Minister check those figures out? If I am right, will he support this Bill tomorrow?

There are thousands of vacant houses across the State. What is worse is the hundreds and thousands of families who have to pass them every day and the people who have to live next to them. There is so much I want to say about this. I know of a girl at the moment and herself and her 14-year-old daughter are in a bedroom sharing a bed. Her mam passed away recently. Her dad cannot grieve because his son is in the front room, and the daughter and the granddaughter are there in the other room.

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