Mairéad Farrell (Galway West, Sinn Fein)
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1032.To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government further to Parliamentary Question No. 281 of 1 February 2024, if he will provide a more recent breakdown of those sites in Galway, disaggregated by Galway city and county; the value of each of these sites, their location and the value of derelict sites fees each has brought in; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31146/24]

Alan Dillon (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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The Derelict Sites Act 1990 (the Act) 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. The enforcement and implementation of the provisions of the Act is a matter for individual local authorities.

A property can be placed on the derelict site register where it is deemed by a local authority to satisfy the criteria of a derelict site under the terms of section 3 of the Act i.e. (i) it is in a dangerous or ruinous condition; (ii) it is in a neglected or unsightly condition; or (iii) there is a presence of litter, waste or debris on the site. A property cannot be placed on the derelict site register of a local authority simply by being vacant.

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. My Department does not collect data on the value of derelict sites, their locations or the value of derelict sites fees each has brought in. The number of Derelict Sites on the Register for Galway City and Galway County and the amount of levies received and outstanding in 2023 are in the attached table.