9. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance if he has met with the Revenue Commissioners to discuss the new derelict sites tax. [63073/25]

Sentiment score: 0.00

Will the Tánaiste update the House on whether he has met the Revenue Commissioners to discuss the new derelict sites tax? Will he consider starting the collection of the derelict sites tax on 1 January 2026 or early 2026, and not 2027?

Sentiment score: 0.00

The Revenue Commissioners taking over the collection of the derelict sites levy is one thing we can support. It is something Sinn Féin has been advocating for years. My worry now is this: for how long more will land hoarders and speculators who are sitting on sites be able to get away with it? Cork City Council is one of the best local authorities at implementing the levy but it is still only collecting one third of it. Cork City Council has €5 million outstanding. There are millions of euro outstanding while speculators see the value of their properties go up and destroy communities at the same time. Will the Tánaiste commit that the levy will come into place on 1 January 2027 at the very latest? Local authorities have derelict sites registers at the moment, but they are not complete. I agree with the Tánaiste on that. There is a lot of work to do but there are registers there. Can we start with the people who are, in most cases, the worst offenders?

Sentiment score: 0.12

The Tánaiste and the Minister, Deputy Browne, have said that this tax will get more derelict sites turned into housing delivery, which I support. If housing delivery is not happening, the tax must hurt those who are abusing their communities. When I walk around a brilliant European city like Dublin, I look at the dereliction. It is the same in my own city of Cork. It drags the whole city and community down. I want to ask the Tánaiste a couple of things. Will the derelict sites levy that is collected in a local authority area be put back into that area to tackle dereliction locally? There is a job of work to tackle dereliction, to acquire these places through CPO and to take on these land hoarders. At this moment, if someone who has a derelict site paints it and can camouflage it, it is not considered derelict. I suggest that if someone has a derelict site that has been lying idle for years, even if it has a coat of paint, that is not good enough. If a site is not being used for housing, business or the community, it is derelict and the tax must apply.

Sentiment score: -0.03