Vacant housing in Defence properties
Deputy Bacik raised vacant homes, specifically asking how many Department of Defence homes were empty and could house people. The Tánaiste said vacancy must be tackled through the Derelict Sites Act and vacant home tax, and indicated there were about 5,000 accommodation units in Defence Forces use.
I welcome the students in the Gallery, who are politics students from the High School in Rathgar in my constituency. They are very welcome.
I want to return to the issue of housing, the civil rights issue of our generation and most particularly of the generation of the students in the Gallery who are with us today. One key way to increase the number of homes available, that are so badly needed across our communities, is to ensure that we have a really positive proactive programme to turn vacant housing into homes. I raised the issue with the Tánaiste last week and he was somewhat dismissive, if he does not mind me saying. He told me to get onto my local authority. In the meantime, I have raised it with the Taoiseach. He acknowledged this is a national issue. Indeed, in the Irish Mirror this week we saw an investigative report showing that 250 HSE-owned properties are lying idle and vacant at a time when the housing disaster is ravaging our communities. Today, we in Labour will be launching our alternative budget. We will be including plans for an emergency empty homes fund to crack down on the appalling blight of vacancy and dereliction and bring homes back into use.
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How many Department of Defence homes, that could be used as homes for our Defence Forces personnel and others, are lying empty?
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I look forward to publication of Labour's budget proposals. I saw no sign of change in Sinn Féin's budget at all, despite all the rhetoric. The Social Democrats have gone for a €17 billion expenditure. It is really challenging for Labour to come with a budget package-----
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-----given the underwhelming Sinn Féin budget and the very interesting Social Democrats budget in terms of financial sustainability.
I was not dismissive last week at all. I just made the very fair point that there is a Derelict Sites Act. Local authorities have a duty and obligation to implement it, and they should be proactive in doing so. There is a vacant house tax which we introduced. I agree 100% with the Deputy that vacancy has to be dealt with. There is absolutely no necessity for it. There are about 5,000-odd accommodation units in use within the Defence Forces, but they are for general inductees or people attending training courses and so on in various barracks. I can get the figure for the Deputy.