Maria McCormack (Sinn Fein)

I thank the Minister of State for coming in. I am glad to speak to this Bill today. Having so many vacant or derelict homes rotting away in our towns, cities and villages while families are living out of tiny hotel rooms in homelessness is absolutely shameful. Definitely having boarded up homes at a time like this is like hoarding food in a famine. For far too long the Government has been failing to properly resource local authorities to bring empty social homes back into use quickly and efficiently. Figures received in response to a recent parliamentary question from Deputy Thomas Gould show that over 50% of council homes in the country will remain boarded up for 2025. Seriously. We have been in the height of a housing crisis for nearly a decade and these basics cannot even be got right to make sure councils are funded properly to get social housing voids returned to stock as quickly as possible. This is absolutely baffling.

The latest data on derelict site levies for 2023 show that 1,913 sites were on the register but only one in three was levied. Of the €5.6 million levied, only €600,000 was collected. The authorities across the State were owed €20.5 million. As of 31 December 2023, there were only 30 sites on the Laois register. The levy was applied to only eight of these at a value of €48,125. Less than €16,000 was collected by Laois County Council. It is clear that local authorities have been stripped of funding and have been undermined for so long by Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael that they are not in a position to collect these levies. We need a derelict sites levy with teeth because that will be transformative. Sinn Féin has called for the levy to be collected by Revenue and we would reform the CPO. We need to move towards a use it or lose it policy. In Laois I talk to grown adults who, through no fault of their own, are stuck living in their parents' back bedroom while next door is left to rot when it is boarded up. How frustrating and sickening is this for people to see?

Sinn Féin will support the Bill today because anything that will help the housing crisis needs to be done as a matter of urgency. I am really disappointed to see that it is not being allowed to go on to Committee Stage. Of course, if amendments are needed, we would all be interested in working on that. Homeless families and people waiting to get a home of their own having to wait another year while we kick the can down the road is just not acceptable.