Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Senator has hit the nail on the head; it has simply taken too long to carry out the valuations process, which basically means that people are at a disadvantage while they are waiting for a valuation to be carried out. The entire purpose of this legislation is to speed that up. That is one of the reasons we are looking at giving the Valuation Office the ability to outsource certain tasks subject to certain provisions. As the Senator will have seen in my remarks, we are giving the Commissioner of Valuation the ability to limit and restrict those functions to what he or she believes to be appropriate. We intend to pilot this in Carlow and Kilkenny and if it works to continue to roll it out.

I will come to the issue of occupier-assisted valuation when we discuss amendments Nos. 31 to 37. In this Valuation (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill we are very eager to ensure there are as many inputs as possible for occupiers to give the information they have. This legislation will allow the Valuation Office to request certain information of the occupier, which is a step forward and to be welcomed.