Government’s ‘war on dereliction’ nothing more than a war of words – delivery needed now
Government’s ‘war on dereliction’ nothing more than a war of words – delivery needed now - The Labour Party
In Leaders’ Questions today, Labour Leader Ivana Bacik TD has condemned the Government’s weak response to the levels of vacancy and dereliction blighting the entire country. She has criticised Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil’s attempts to deflect blame for the housing crisis onto City and County Councils, despite having governed together, directing housing policy, for a decade.
Deputy Bacik said,
“Vacant and derelict buildings and sites represent a serious blight on our villages, towns and cities. This issue must be tackled urgently if we are to bring our urban centres back to life, and to address the housing disaster. Properties left vacant for a prolonged period should be compulsorily purchased; and local authorities should be resourced to carry this out at scale.
“At a time when communities are crying out for delivery of affordable homes, the Government’s consistent response is to deflect, deny and defend the indefensible. We saw it on Sunday when the Tánaiste sought to pin responsibility for vacancy and dereliction on Councils alone. Meanwhile, the Taoiseach’s response today was more of the same – evasive, disingenuous, and full of deflection. The new dereliction tax proposals approved by Cabinet today will not be legislated for until 2027; they will not be up and running until at least 2028; and they won’t even be applied to all land hoarders right away. There is no indication that this Government is serious about constructive, sustainable housing policy. After years of inaction, the best response that the Ministers can offer is a thinly-veiled attempt to pass the buck.
“The speculators and land hoarders that the Government refuses to challenge are profiting from the misery caused by the chronic shortage of homes. Unless new taxes are set at a meaningful levels, backed up by enforcement and streamlined CPO processes, these speculators can keep sitting on their assets. The derelict buildings, on empty streets, in towns and cities across the country, are a visual reminder of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael’s abject failure to get off the fence and fix housing.
“The failure to activate empty sites has real consequences. When delivery of new homes remains so slow, Government policy cannot leave existing homes to fall into decay; doing so exacerbates the lack of supply with dire results. Every day, I hear from people who have received an eviction notice with literally nowhere to go. Labour representatives are supporting young families and older people who, having received a notice to quit, are terrified to answer the door or the phone in case that will mark the moment that they lose their home. Half measures and delays are no good to those families facing the reality of homelessness.
“The Minister for Housing has declared ‘war on dereliction’. That war will not be won by way of press release, or snide comments about local authorities in the media. Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael must stop behaving like commentators. They must take charge of the crisis and act with urgency. We must see introduction of Compulsory Sales Orders, a new mechanism to force persistently vacant and derelict properties back into use.”
ENDS