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

Group 2 contains amendments to the eligibility conditions in section 9 of the Act of 1978 as far as those conditions apply to the buildings on the land. Currently, eligibility to acquire the freehold title does not exist in the case of an improvement to such buildings but will arise where the alteration or reconstruction causes the buildings to lose their original identity. This formulation has given rise to some confusion and uncertainty over the years. The Government's amendments, based on the expert group's recommendations, adopt a somewhat different approach from achieving the same objective as the Private Members' Bill. They seek to do so in a manner that reduces the risk of a future constitutional challenge. The Bill's proposals to delete subsection (1)(b) and subsection (2) of section 9 would remove those provisions that require that the permanent buildings are not simply an improvement of the buildings as defined in subsection (2). The expert group has agreed that the concept of an improvement creates uncertainty and should be dropped from the legislation. However, instead of simply repealing subsection (1)(b) and inserting a new definition of permanent buildings in a new subsection (6), the expert group has proposed that subsection (1)(b) be amended to exclude the reference to an improvement, but with a revised focus on whether the buildings in question have lost their original identity, together with the revised wording of paragraph (c). These amendments are complemented by the new subsection (6), which sets out a number of factors to be taken into account for the purpose of determining whether the permanent buildings have lost their original identity.