Marie Sherlock (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I will speak initially to amendments Nos. 155 and 156. I strongly support those amendments because we should have specific provision for social and cultural amenities in our development plans and that should be hardwired into this legislation. I know that many local authorities make reference to this in their county and city development plans, but the reality is that so many of our local authorities are so taken up with what I think many see as the core work of housing, waste and road maintenance that social and cultural amenities, whether arts spaces or sports facilities, are seen sometimes as an afterthought across some local authorities, not all. Certainly, there is a huge inconsistency and a haphazard approach to how we embed that provision across local authority planning in this country. The reality is that it is not just about putting roofs over people's heads; it is about building communities. As Senator Ruane powerfully said, certain communities were built with just houses but with no thought to the facilities around them. We see it in certain parts of the city at the moment, including in Dublin 8 but also in the north inner city and across the north side. There are real issues with regard to accessing social and cultural amenities. A big issue for me is that, fundamentally, we have divested some of this responsibility now to the private sector in terms of the 5% floor space which is to be part of any large-scale residential development and given over to an arts space. That is very welcome but there will be a key issue with enforcement. We have seen this with regard to childcare spaces. We have had this provision in place for quite a number of years yet little or no enforcement of that floor space for childcare.

Ultimately, it is fine to point to city and county development plans that already refer to social and cultural space, but this Bill is an opportunity to hardwire that into the legislation. If I may speak to Dublin for a brief moment, last week I held a meeting about arts spaces in this city. This is the responsibility not just of the Minister's Department but also, of course, of the Department of arts and culture. There is a real hurt and frustration in the city because we have seen a hollowing out of arts spaces over recent years. Now culture cannot compete with capitalism. We see spaces bought up and, ultimately, there is a lack of a comprehensive response from our local authority. It is doing a small bit but it is a drop in the ocean compared with what is needed. Unless we hardwire the requirements for social and cultural space in our city and development plans into this Bill, we will have an inconsistent, haphazard approach into the future and, ultimately, we will fail artists and those who want to develop more cultural spaces in our city.

Maidir le leasuithe Uimh. 166 agus 182, tá tagairt don Ghaeltacht sa Bhille agus fáiltímid roimhe sin, ach níl ach tagairt amháin. Níl aon sonraí ann seachas tagairt do chaomhnú na Gaeilge. Is é an caomhnú is fearr do na Gaeltachtaí ná spriocanna soiléire daingne do dhaonra na Gaeltachta agus tithe do Ghaeilgeoirí sa Ghaeltacht. Tuigimid go bhfuil a lán frustrachais maidir le cinntí pleanála sa Ghaeltacht i dtaca leis seo agus tá easpa deiseanna do dhaoine le Gaeilge chun cónaí sna Gaeltachtaí. Creidimid gur cóir plean daonra agus tithíochta do gach limistéar pleanála teanga. Ní féidir an Ghaeilge a spreagadh mura bhfuil córas ann chun an saol trí Ghaeilge a fhorbairt. I am struck that there is a specific requirement in the Bill for population and housing targets for city development plans yet we do not have that same requirement for the Gaeltachtaí, the Gaeltacht language planning areas, Gaeltacht service towns or areas that might be designated as Irish language networks. That is a glaring gap in the legislation. I know it has been a big call of Conradh na Gaeilge. No doubt it has been knocking on the Minister's door as well. We need to see much greater detail maidir leis na dualgais don our local authorities with regard to housing population and housing targets, planning targets, in the city and county development plans across the country maidir leis na Gaeltachtaí agus na ceantair Ghaeilge.

I will make two last points about the amendments in this grouping. As regards our amendment No. 170, we welcome that there is a reference to the analysis of vacant and derelict land or sites within local authority areas and a strategy to be put in place. As the Minister knows, long-term vacant housing and derelict housing are a blight across all our communities. It is not as if this is something new because we have a vacant homes tax and a derelict sites register. A real question has to be asked as to what exactly will be done to push on and transform long-term vacant housing and derelict properties into homes across our cities and towns in this country.I welcome the reference to a strategy here but I am not personally convinced that there is a political will to tackle long-term vacancy. We need to see reform of the compulsory purchase laws. We have seen properties that have stayed for a long period of time on derelict site registers. Indeed, there have been houses on the derelict site register that have been done up by the local authority - Senator Fitzpatrick will be well aware of them in our area - that have come off the derelict site register, that have had to go back on the derelict site register and, eventually, are the subject of compulsory purchase order by the local authority. Unfortunately, we are not taking the opportunity in this Bill or, indeed, in any other Bill to transform our CPO laws. We would like to hear much more from the Minister as to what we are actually going to do, led by him as Minister, to transform CPO laws and truly tackle dereliction and vacancy in our cities and towns. The reality is, specifically with regards to the long-term vacant homes, the tax is not worth the paper it is written on. It is set at such a low rate that is not designed to raise any sort of serious revenue or to penalise or prompt those into action. There is a real question mark about how serious this Government is about vacancy and dereliction, particularly with regards to those properties that are caught up in many years of litigation. In my view, the State is sitting back and saying that it is litigation and it cannot interfere. That is no longer good enough. There are thousands of people who are desperately seeking homes to rent and to purchase and their hearts are broken every single day walking past these homes.

The last point I want to make is with regards to Moore Street. I refer to leasú Uimh. 185. For as long as I have been in Dublin, which is 24 years at this stage, there has been talk about what will happen with Moore Street. There have been various plans but none of them has come to fruition. The time has come for this Government to make clear, working with Dublin City Council and all the property owners, and to put a comprehensive plan in place now for Moore Street. This has gone on way too long. Many of us have spoke about the blight on O'Connell Street but in terms of the overall lifting of O'Connell Street, the lifting of Moore Street and the recognition of the historical importance of Moore Street, we need to see some sort of action now as opposed to this continuing interminably. To most people living in Dublin who do not understand the ins and outs of what has gone on over the past number of years, there is a degree of confusion and bewilderment as to why Moore Street has been allowed in some parts fall into greater decay and that greater action has not been taken. I get that this is not only the responsibility of Government but it is Government, the local authority and those who own the property on the street. I very much support amendment No. 185 to press on with the plan for Moore Street at this stage.