Mary Fitzpatrick (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the reporting yesterday of the construction of new homes for the first quarter of this year. Housing construction is up 20% on the same time last year, with a record high of almost 7,000 new homes being built. This is an incredibly positive and encouraging report for anyone who wants to buy their own home and anyone who cares about our citizens having a secure and affordable home. I also welcome the Government's decision this week to increase the grants for vacant and derelict homes. Since this Government was first formed, this is an issue that I, as Fianna Fáil spokesperson in the Seanad, and my colleagues, on behalf of the Fianna Fáil Parliamentary Party, have pushed hard on to ensure the State basically tackles the scourge of vacancy and dereliction which exists in every town and village across the country. We have successfully and reasonably argued that the fastest and most sustainable way to increase our housing and affordable housing supply is to reuse existing vacant properties on every street in every town and village in the country. These are properties that are already connected to water, sewerage and electricity, are on public transport routes and close to shops, villages and schools. The grants that have been announced include a grant of €50,000 from the State for properties that have been vacant for two years or more and those built before 2007, and a grant of €70,000 for derelict properties. These grants are helping young people to achieve homeownership and they are very welcome. They are the fastest and most sustainable way to increase our housing, and I congratulate everybody who worked on making it happen.