Results 5,561-5,580 of 9,814 for speaker:Steven Matthews

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Implementing Housing for All: Discussion (11 Oct 2022)

Steven Matthews: We are out of time, so we must move on now. I appreciate that everybody is keeping to time and it is very helpful. We will come back around for another question.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Implementing Housing for All: Discussion (11 Oct 2022)

Steven Matthews: If we all stick to the allotted time, there will definitely be time in the third round.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Implementing Housing for All: Discussion (11 Oct 2022)

Steven Matthews: I want to go back to the vacancy and dereliction question. Something that has been spoken about for decades is living over the shop becoming popular again. It is not that simple and it is complex, which we all acknowledge. For many years we were able to spread out greenfield site after greenfield site and sprawl with new builds and it was so much easier to do, and it still is. We have...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Implementing Housing for All: Discussion (11 Oct 2022)

Steven Matthews: Has DCC compulsorily purchased any vacant homes?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Implementing Housing for All: Discussion (11 Oct 2022)

Steven Matthews: Has DCC compulsorily purchased any vacant homes?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Implementing Housing for All: Discussion (11 Oct 2022)

Steven Matthews: Has DLRCC been able to compulsorily purchase any vacant homes?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Implementing Housing for All: Discussion (11 Oct 2022)

Steven Matthews: I will move on to dereliction in a minute but I want to stick to vacancy because we are introducing a vacant homes tax and a vacant home is not necessarily a derelict site. There is a lot of confusion among dereliction, vacant homes, vacant sites and derelict sites. We need clarity on that, including to assist the local authorities. There is a vacant homes tax; it is self-declared that the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Implementing Housing for All: Discussion (11 Oct 2022)

Steven Matthews: I just wanted to get it out there clearly that if a house is vacant you cannot just go in and put a compulsory purchase order on it. There are issues with it and that is something we need to address as legislators. There is a derelict sites register in all local authorities and then there is a derelict sites levy but there is an appalling collection rate on that of less than 10% across...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Implementing Housing for All: Discussion (11 Oct 2022)

Steven Matthews: If the council collects it at the end point when it is being sold, there is very little incentive for anybody to do anything. They are just sitting on a derelict site and it can sit there and have a real impact on the local area.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Implementing Housing for All: Discussion (11 Oct 2022)

Steven Matthews: To do the works can take that detrimental look off it but it does not necessarily bring it back into use. If the council boards up the windows and paints flowers on it, it does not look derelict anymore, but-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Implementing Housing for All: Discussion (11 Oct 2022)

Steven Matthews: Does Ms McNamara think a tax would be better than a levy, if the tax was collected by Revenue? If the council was to submit its derelict sites list and Revenue was then to chase the collection, would that return a higher amount?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Implementing Housing for All: Discussion (11 Oct 2022)

Steven Matthews: Again, the vacant homes tax was introduced not as a revenue-raising tool but as an activation tool. If there was a derelict sites tax, would that act as a stronger activation measure, where someone would say that, as there is a tax and it is going to be collected by Revenue, “I will try to sell it or refurbish it”, or “I will reach out to the local authority rather than...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Implementing Housing for All: Discussion (11 Oct 2022)

Steven Matthews: My time is up. I call Senator Boyhan in the Independent slot, to be followed by Senator Fitzpatrick for Fianna Fáil. The third Fine Gael slot will be shared. I then have Deputy Ó Broin to come back in, followed by Deputy Boyd Barrett, and Senator Cummins wishes to come in for a third round. I call Senator Boyhan.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Implementing Housing for All: Discussion (11 Oct 2022)

Steven Matthews: Cost rental is meant to be long-term secure rental, liveable for life. I would have a concern if the build-to-rent standard was now to be converted to long-term liveable cost rental. They are very different models.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Implementing Housing for All: Discussion (11 Oct 2022)

Steven Matthews: Yes but the standard of the design for build-to-rent is what I am getting at.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Implementing Housing for All: Discussion (11 Oct 2022)

Steven Matthews: Okay.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Implementing Housing for All: Discussion (11 Oct 2022)

Steven Matthews: I am just making the point that it is something that I would keep an eye on. Senator Cummins and Deputy Higgins are going to share the last slot.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Implementing Housing for All: Discussion (11 Oct 2022)

Steven Matthews: We now move to the third round and Deputy Ó Broin is the first to indicate.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Implementing Housing for All: Discussion (11 Oct 2022)

Steven Matthews: The Deputy has made his point.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Implementing Housing for All: Discussion (11 Oct 2022)

Steven Matthews: I ask Mr. Curran to be as brief as he can.