Written answers

Tuesday, 15 November 2022

Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government

Derelict Sites

Photo of Thomas GouldThomas Gould (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein)
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259. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if he will publish all reports given to him by various Departments on derelict properties in their ownership. [56128/22]

Photo of Darragh O'BrienDarragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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Under Action 19.9 of Housing for All (September 2021) it was agreed that all Government Departments examine their existing portfolio of properties and, subject to any obligations under the Public Spending Code, the Land Development Agency (LDA) Act 2021 or the State Property Act 1954, would place them on the market if they were not required and may be suitable for residential housing. This would allow for more efficient use of those buildings and provide opportunities for individuals and families to convert suitable buildings into homes.

In this context, my Department wrote to all Government Departments in December 2021 requesting that they review their respective portfolio of properties and assess what properties, if any, may be suitable for housing. All Departments responded to this request and further direct engagement is now taking place, led by the Housing for All State Lands Subgroup with those Departments who manage large property portfolios, albeit in the ownership of Office of Public Works (OPW), to identify potential underutilised properties which could be released for use for residential purposes. The importance of this work has been reinforced in the recently published Housing for All Action Plan Update (November 2022). Under Action 10.5 of the Update, there is a commitment to continue this engagement across Government Departments and Agencies to identity further State lands and property which could be made available for residential use (for example by local authorities, the LDA etc) and to report progress to Government in this regard by end Q2 2023.

Housing for All: A New Housing Plan for Ireland (September 2021) and the Housing for All Action Plan Update (November 2022) can be accessed on my Department’s website at the respective links:

www.gov.ie/en/publication/ef5ec-housing-for-all-a-new-housing-plan-for-ireland/

www.gov.ie/en/publication/da0d1-action-plan-update-and-q3-2022-progress-report/

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