Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator for raising this important issue and I acknowledge his work in this area because he has been consistently bringing this matter to the forefront of our Department since his election to the Seanad.

By way of background, the Planning and Development (Amendment) (No.2) Regulations 2018 which came into operation on 8 February 2018, provide for an exemption from the requirement to obtain planning permission in respect of a change of use of certain vacant commercial premises, including vacant areas above ground floor premises, to residential use. This measure was aimed at facilitating the productive reuse of qualifying vacant commercial buildings as homes, while also facilitating urban renewal and the bringing on stream of increased housing supply.

The 2018 regulations were due to lapse on 31 December 2021 but this deadline was extended to February 2022 arising from a Covid-related extension of planning timelines last year. The Government and I recognised that to resolve the housing crisis, we need to give consideration to every viable and sustainable option at our disposal, including converting existing vacant commercial premises to residential use. Current measures to facilitate this include, as mentioned by the Senator, the repair and leasing scheme, which was introduced to assist property owners in bringing vacant properties back into use for social housing purposes, and the buy and renew scheme, which supports local authorities in purchasing and renewing housing units in need of repair which can then be made available for social housing use.

The recently published Housing for All - a New Housing Plan for Ireland includes a further number of new measures to help revitalise towns. These include a new local authority-led programme to help local authorities buy or compulsorily purchase 2,500 vacant homes in their areas, which can then be sold on the open market, with a view to ensuring those homes do not remain vacant. The croí cónaithe (towns) fund will be delivered by local authorities for the provision of serviced sites for housing to attract people to build their homes and to support the refurbishment of vacant properties, enabling people to live in small towns and villages in a sustainable way.

Housing for All further commits to reviewing and extending the 2018 regulations that exempt certain vacant commercial premises from the requirement to obtain planning permission for change of use to residential purposes to the end of 2025. This review is currently under way in my Department and will be completed by the end of the year. This review is looking at a number of potential amendments, including the provision of an exemption for the conversion or pubs to residential use, which could be made to the current regulations.

A notable feature in recent years, as the Senator mentioned, is the number of pubs that have closed, particularly in rural towns and villages, which is impacting on their vibrancy. While the idea of exempting the conversion of pubs to residential use may initially seem positive, we are taking a few considerations into account in this regard, including the size, location, the zoning of pubs and what exemption thresholds might be applied in this regard. My Department is currently working on a detailed review of this proposal with a view to feeding into the draft regulations, which it is intended to submit to the Oireachtas for approval shortly.

It should be noted, however, that under section 262(4) of the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended, legislative proposals on exempted development require the approval of both Houses of the Oireachtas before they can be signed into law.

Once again, I acknowledge the Senator for raising this important issue. We will be in a position to bring forward draft legislative proposals, including the extending of the timeline, and scope, as alluded to in his contribution, of the current 2018 regulations, to the Oireachtas shortly.