2026-06-25

80. Deputy Conor Sheehan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the steps he will take to tackle dereliction in advance of the introduction of the new derelict property tax; his plans to mandate local authorities to collect the millions in outstanding derelict sites levies; when the Government will introduce its new Compulsory Purchase Order Bill 2025 with streamlined and strengthened CPO powers; if he will consider introducing compulsory sale orders to bring vacant and neglected homes back into the housing supply; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48496/26]

I ask the Minister about the steps he and his Department will take to tackle dereliction in advance of the new derelict property tax and how he is going to mandate local authorities to collect the millions in outstanding derelict site levies in advance of that, and when the Government will introduce the new compulsory purchase order Bill. Will he examine the concept of compulsory sale orders to bring vacant and neglected homes back into use?

I thank the Deputy for the question. The Government's housing plan, Delivering Homes, Building Communities, aims to ensure that the activities and resources used to address vacancy and dereliction are co-ordinated and effective, and that legislative powers are used proactively to tackle dereliction and vacancy. The derelict property tax announced in budget 2026 is intended to introduce legislation providing for the tax in the Finance Act 2026. When it comes into effect, the tax will replace the derelict sites levy and will be collected by the Revenue Commissioners. Derelict site levies that remain outstanding when the new tax is introduced will remain as charges on the property and will be the responsibility of each local authority to collect. In the context of the measures we have introduced to tackle the scourge of vacancy and dereliction, the vacant property refurbishment grant provides up to €70,000 for the refurbishment of vacant and derelict properties for occupation as a principal private residence or for rental. The vacant property refurbishment grant has been expanded as of 1 April this year to include a new “above the shop” grant introduced to support property owners to bring these vacant upper floors over commercial units into use as homes. This provides unprecedented support of up to €135,000. The CPO activation programme requires a proactive and systematic approach by local authorities to identifying vacant and derelict properties and engaging with owners to bring these properties back into use. This includes using their compulsory purchase powers under the Derelict Sites Act 1990 and the Housing Act 1966 when engagement with the owners of these properties is not successful. All 31 local authorities have full-time vacant homes officers and there is a range of schemes in place. The concept of a compulsory sale order has been examined by my Department and the Housing Agency. I will elaborate further in my follow-up response.

I thank the Minister of State for his response. There is €20.5 million in levies outstanding for derelict sites. I want to press the Government on what new measures there are and what it is going to do to make sure that local authorities collect that money, notwithstanding the new derelict property tax. I will also ask about the compulsory purchase order Bill. The Law Reform Commission gave very clear recommendations in 2023. When are we going to see that Bill? Will the Minister of State confirm on the record that the derelict property tax will not be littered with exemptions? We have had cases before where measures like the derelict property tax were introduced, but they sound a lot better than they actually are because when they are finally introduced, they are littered with exemptions for this, that and the other.

As the Deputy knows, all local authorities in the country are independently operated. It is their responsibility, and their responsibility alone, to ensure they collect outstanding levies, particularly the derelict sites levies. They are charges on properties, so it often takes time for a property to be disposed of and for the levy to come in. However, it is absolutely their responsibility. We are committed to ensuring that we have the derelict property tax, which will be collected by Revenue, in place as early as possible. Regarding the compulsory sale order, which the Deputy referenced in his initial contribution, the Department, in conjunction with the Housing Agency, has examined this matter in other jurisdictions. On the basis of that evaluation, it is not intended to progress that measure. The focus will remain on the derelict property tax and the use of CPO powers as the stick for individuals and property owners who have not availed of the many measures put in place by the Government.

The reason I raised the issue of compulsory sale orders is that this is something the Scottish Government had in a 2018 land reform report, although it has not been implemented yet. I am raising it not so much with the idea that the compulsory sale order would be punitive, but for it to be another framework by which engagement can be sought with the owners of problematic sites. I have two follow-up questions. What is the rationale for the derelict property tax to be applied to towns with a population of over 4,000, given that we have significant issues with rural dereliction? When will we see the compulsory purchase order Bill?

I am glad the Deputy mentioned Scotland because it is referenced in the report that has been done. As the Deputy knows, it has not been introduced in that jurisdiction. It is very difficult to get data on the effectiveness of this, although it has been examined. Where local authorities are using the Derelict Sites Act to put derelict properties on the register, they have been successful in using their CPO powers. Other local authorities that have not been proactive in this space or have not put notices on properties seem to use the excuse, in my view, that there is an issue with CPO in this country. If that were the case, Limerick would not be able to CPO the number of properties that it has, nor my local authority or some of the other good, notable examples around the country. Where it is working, it is working well. Where it is not working, I do not think it is as a result of deficiencies, but as a result of a lack of focus and co-ordinated effort by some local authorities in this space.