Patricia Ryan (Kildare South, Sinn Fein)
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250. To ask the Minister for Rural and Community Development if she will establish a fund to assist local authorities to purchase former bank branch buildings; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26589/22]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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The Government's Town Centre First policy represents a whole of Government approach and aims to tackle vacancy, combat dereliction and breathe new life into our town centres.  The policy sets out a framework to give our towns the tools and resources required to become viable, vibrant and attractive places to live, work, and socialise.

The policy is underpinned by significant levels of public investment spread across major Government schemes such as the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF), the Urban Regeneration and Development Fund (URDF), the Croí Conaithe (Towns) Fund and the Town and Village Renewal Scheme.

Within these schemes, I can confirm that support is provided for local authorities to purchase or lease strategically important buildings in towns, such as former bank buildings, and to repurpose them for community uses which help to drive the regeneration of our towns and villages.

For example, the Town and Village Renewal Scheme aims to assist with the rejuvenation of rural towns and villages throughout Ireland, making them more attractive places to live, work, and visit. In line with the commitment in Our Rural Future, the current Town & Village Renewal scheme prioritises the renovation of derelict and vacant buildings in our town centres, with a view to bringing these buildings back into use.

For 2021, I increased the maximum grant available through the Scheme, from €200k to €500k, which was designed to enable local authorities to purchase derelict buildings and/or vacant sites in our towns and villages and bring them back into use. The Town and Village Renewal Scheme alone has seen over 1,400 projects across Ireland receive funding in excess of €113m since it's launch in 2016.   The successful applications for the 2021 Town and Village Scheme included projects to redevelop a range of vacant buildings such as former banks, Garda stations, national schools, and convents.

I was delighted to secure increased funding across the range of rural development schemes in Budget 2022, and my officials are currently working on finalising the details of the 2022 Town and Village Renewal Scheme.  While this process is ongoing, there is no doubt that we will again be prioritising projects that bring vacant and derelict buildings back into use and promote the regeneration of our rural towns and villages, with the option of purchasing such buildings being a key option.  I will be announcing the details of the 2022 scheme shortly.