I thank the Cathaoirleach Gníomhach for facilitating my taking of this question. I would appreciate it if the Minister would outline his plans to introduce a new voids programme.
Sentiment score: 0.38
I thank the Minister and welcome his commitment to vacant housing and the voids. The figure of more than €300 million since 2014 is very significant. I very much welcome the Minister's statements on a commitment to a prompt turnaround of properties, ensuring only essential work is carried out so those houses can be re-let quickly and that any other work that is non-essential can be done through a planned maintenance programme. That is critically important. The Minister knows full well nothing frustrates people more than seeing vacant housing in local authority areas. We need to continue to work hard to ensure it does not happen. It was debated in the Dáil earlier this week and the Taoiseach addressed the issue also. It really is inexcusable in a housing crisis that there are properties lying vacant for up to 12 months and in some cases beyond that. I welcome the Minister's commitment and hope we can make progress in the near future.
Sentiment score: 0.33
As the Minister said, there is a significant difference between some of the local authorities. He referred to counties Laois and Kerry, for example, between which there is a significant disparity. That is something we certainly have to delve into because how some local authorities can do it much faster than others needs to be examined to see how best practice can be applied across the local authority sector. The longer a house is vacant, the more disrepair it falls into and the more problematic it becomes. It is unsightly in an area and can result in antisocial behaviour. For a multitude of reasons we need to turn these properties around quickly, not least because we have a large number of people waiting for properties and allocations. It really is critically important. Non-essential work can wait, essential work needs to be done and we need to get the houses reoccupied. I appreciate many local authorities take the opportunity to do deep retrofits and so on, including energy retrofits, but these can be done at another time. We need to get the houses reoccupied. That has to be our highest priority.
Sentiment score: 0.14
126. Deputy Séamus McGrath asked the Minister for Justice the number of new class intakes that will enter Templemore this year; the expected overall number of students to enter Templemore in 2025; and the number of recruits in 2023 and 2024. [24765/25]
Sentiment score: 0.22
I appreciate the Minister's commitment to this issue. The programme for Government sets out an ambitious target in relation to the recruitment of gardaí. I know the Minister is committed to increasing the visibility of gardaí on our streets. One can see in Dublin that there has been an improvement in that respect but we need to see it across the country. The Minister visited Cork recently, which I welcomed. He took on board what he was told in Cork regarding the number of gardaí. It is important that we get a fair share of the allocation of gardaí when there are new graduates from Templemore. Unfortunately, only last weekend, there was a serious incident in Cork city where a woman was violently assaulted in broad daylight in the city centre. That highlights the need for strong visibility of gardaí on the streets. I ask the Minister to ensure he keeps as much pressure on as possible to get a high number of gardaí into Templemore so we can get them out on our streets.
Sentiment score: 0.27
It is to be welcomed that there were more than 6,000 expressions of interest in joining An Garda Síochána, as are the moves by the Minister to speed up the recruitment process in the interview process and so on. It needs to be curtailed as much as possible to fast-track the delivery of extra gardaí on our streets. I also welcome that three more classes will enter Templemore this year. A lot of good work is being done. It is important that visibility on the streets is increased and that we fulfil our commitment in the programme for Government to recruit additional gardaí. It is what the public and businesses in city and urban areas want. I thank the Minister for his work. I urge him to ensure this proceeds as quickly as possible.
Sentiment score: 0.38