James O'Connor (Cork East, Fianna Fail)
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246. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government his plans for the development of derelict sites; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25249/21]

Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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Local authorities have been provided with a number of powers and measures to deal with the issue of derelict properties, both in larger urban conglomerations and in smaller rural towns and villages. There also exists a framework of overarching policy and capital funding which provides support to development, including urban regeneration.

The Derelict Sites Act 1990 imposes a general duty on every owner and occupier of land to take all reasonable steps to ensure that the land does not become, or continue to be, a derelict site. The Act also imposes a duty on local authorities to take all reasonable steps, including the exercise of appropriate statutory powers, to ensure that any land within their functional area does not become, or continue to be, a derelict site.

Local authority powers include requiring owners or occupiers to take appropriate measures on derelict sites, acquiring derelict sites by agreement, or compulsorily, and applying a derelict sites levy on derelict sites. It is a matter for local authorities to determine the most appropriate use of the legislation within their respective functional areas.

Under the Act, local authorities are required to maintain a derelict sites register, which includes the name and address of each owner and occupier, where these can be ascertained by reasonable enquiry, of any land which, in the opinion of the local authority, is a derelict site. Under section 8(5) of the Act, a copy of the derelict sites register for any local authority can be inspected at the offices of that authority during office hours. Members of the public can engage with their local authority in relation to addressing individual derelict sites in their local areas.

Under the Planning and Development (Amendment) Act 2018, both the Derelict Site Levy and the Vacant Site Levy increased from 3% to 7% of the market valuation of relevant sites with effect from January 2020. These levies are applied annually for as long as relevant sites remain derelict or vacant. This change in the rate of the levies is intended to ensure that the levies have more meaningful impact and that the powers of local authorities in tackling dereliction and vacancy are strengthened for the purpose of bringing relevant sites into productive use, thereby facilitating urban regeneration and development in designated areas while also combatting land hoarding.

There is a number of other measures which have been introduced over recent years to assist in addressing dereliction and vacancy. The Repair and Leasing Scheme was introduced to assist property owners in bringing vacant properties back into use for social housing purposes. The scheme is particularly targeted at owners of vacant properties who cannot afford or access the funding needed to bring their properties up to the required standard for rental properties.

Subject to the suitability of the property for social housing, and the agreement of the property owner, the cost of the necessary repairs is met upfront with a capital loan from the local authority or an approved housing body (AHB) up to a maximum of €60,000. This allows the property owner to sign-up to a lease arrangement with a local authority or an AHB for a period of time that is linked to the value of the repairs, subject to a minimum lease period of 5 years. Up to end 2020, a total of 234 homes had been brought back into use under the scheme.

A similar measure entitled the Buy and Renew Scheme supports local authorities in purchasing and renewing housing units in need of repair which can then be made available for social housing use. It is a matter for each local authority to determine the suitability of a property for social housing. Important considerations in this regard include the location of a property in relation to housing need and demand; the design, scale and suitability of a property for social housing use; and the costs and practicality of acquiring and remediating a property.

The Buy and Renew Scheme particularly focuses on older vacant homes to help tackle the problem of dereliction and improve the appearance of the community. As a complementary initiative to the Repair and Leasing Scheme, it provides the option for suitable properties to be purchased rather than leased, if that is the preference of the owners of the properties concerned. To date, local authorities delivered approximately 670 new social homes under the scheme. Activity in this regard is largely delegated to local authorities so they can respond flexibly to all opportunities to provide new social housing.

In respect of social housing, my Department can provide full funding to local authorities for sites on which they bring forward suitable new social housing construction projects, including sites acquired by compulsory purchase order under the Derelict Sites Act. I am keen to see our local authorities expand their ownership of suitable sites for new social housing and with the record funding levels we have secured for new social housing delivery in 2021, we are in a position to support new projects including the associated site costs. It would be important for local authorities to engage with my Department directly and through the Housing Delivery Co-ordination Office in this connection.