Danny Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent)
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1670. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government for an update on the progress on the delivery of future housing in an area (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44057/25]

James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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Government maintains a strong focus on the use of vacant and underutilised relevant public land for housing having agreed the transfer of 37 sites to the Land Development Agency (LDA) for the development of affordable and social housing.

Relevant public land is land owned by a relevant public body, being a local authority, Government Minister or state body listed in Schedule 1 and 2 of the Land Development Agency Act of 2021 (the Act), within a town the population of which is equal to or greater than 10,000 persons at the last Census.

The LDA recently published its 2nd Report on Relevant Public Lands, which is a statutory report in accordance with Section 52 of the Act. This edition provides an update on the 83 parcels of land identified in the 1st report, which focused on the ten main urban locations (five cities and five key growth towns) and also includes consideration of additional relevant public land identified in other census towns.

The 2nd Report includes most sites identified in the 1st Report, and along with new sites in towns newly considered, such as Killarney, identifies a total of 102 parcels of land as having potential to deliver housing-led developments. Included amongst the new sites is St. Finan’s Hospital that is currently registered as in the ownership of the HSE.

My Department is currently engaging with all landholding bodies, such as the HSE, parent Departments and local authorities to make further assessments of the relevant public land sites identified in the Report. Some of the sites identified may be suitable to progress to design and planning and early transfer for housing delivery, subject to achieving statutory consents and agreement.

Other sites may be more complex and/or in operational use. If suitable and prioritised, these sites may require further inputs, such as master planning, enabling works, relocation of existing operations, before applications for statutory consents or development.

I expect that further site recommendations for potential transfer will arise when this process is completed.