Victor Boyhan (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State on this bright spring morning. It is great to see him back in the House. The matter I raise relates to the derelict site levy. As he will know, there are 31 local authorities, so there are varying performances in respect of its collection. It is more of a challenge for big urban areas and cities than it is for some rural areas, given land values, dereliction and a range of other reasons, but it has become an issue. I am loath to suggest the Revenue Commissioners should have any additional work, but I am also pragmatic enough to know that when the Revenue Commissioners are involved in the collection of outstanding taxes or levies due to the State, people perform and live up to that expectation. Revenue has an exceptionally good name. Indeed, as someone who has represented a number of people over many years who have had difficulties with Revenue, I have always found it to be very amenable and progressive in its engagement. The Minister of State might outline what he considers we should or should not do about this issue.

In preparing for this Commencement matter, I made contact with a number of local authorities, and I will speak about the one that covers the area where I live because it gives some measure of the challenges. Currently, there is just over €700,000 in outstanding instances of the derelict site levy in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council, as was confirmed to me by the council this week. Two of the properties have been on the register for many years, while two others have high valuations, and the four of them constitute the bulk of the outstanding levies owed. The volume of debt, therefore, that is due to the local authority relates mostly to these four key large sites. Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council has made great progress over the past three years in reducing the number of sites on its register and, in turn, reducing the volume of site levies owed, and I acknowledge the significant work of the chief executive of that council and the staff who are responsible for this area. Nevertheless, there are currently 11 sites on the register, even if a number of them are in the process of being developed.

What I found common among all the local authorities to which I spoke were sites that are in receivership. There seems to be no commitment or support. A general comment from city and county managers, or chief executives as we call them now, indicated it is difficult to engage in cases of receivership. The owners do not see it as an issue or challenge but rather that they believe that, because their property is in receivership, the new people coming in can deal with it, but that can go on for years. That is not good enough, not least when, as we know, local authorities are struggling to get funding. That is the real challenge.

The derelict sites levy amounts to 7% shy of the market value of the land concerned. The Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage may prescribe a higher percentage, but it cannot be more than 10% of the market value. That is a challenge in itself. There are also the fines associated with the payment, or the lack thereof, and there are issues with the length of time. How can we assist and support the chief executives in our local authorities, and the authorities themselves, to get in this money? Not only is it a levy on derelict sites but these sites are sitting idle at a time of a housing crisis. What are the Government's policies for the rejuvenation and renewal of our cities, towns and villages? It all goes hand in hand and is linked. Will the Government consider, in consultation with the CCMA, how we can progress this matter and, perhaps, empower Revenue to collect the levy on behalf of the local authorities?