152. Deputy Ryan O'Meara asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he has any plans to scrap development levies for one-off housing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37318/26]

Sentiment score: 0.01

Does the Minister, his Department or the Government have any plans to reintroduce the waiver for development levies, particularly in this case on one-off rural homes; to incentivise drive-on but also to make the building of a one-off home in rural Ireland more affordable, particularly for young people?

Sentiment score: 0.00

If I consider a young person or couple building a home for the first time in a rural part of my constituency outside of the villages or towns - for example someone building a house outside Toomyvara village, in a rural part of the parish, or outside Cloghjordan, Ballynahinch or Ardcrony - they will not get a footpath or public water most probably. They certainly will not be connected into any form of sewage system or wastewater mains system and they will not get any public lighting. As far as I am concerned, the development levy, particularly on one-off rural homes, is essentially a tax for the privilege of building on one's own land. I fully appreciate the importance of funding local authorities and I actually believe we need greater levels of funding for local authorities through central Government but I believe the current levy on one-off rural homes is making it more expensive at a time when costs are already so high for those young couples to build their own homes.

Sentiment score: 0.32

In relation to the potential of a waiver, it would be important that central government step in and continue to fund the local authorities to the same level they would have been funded if the individual was paying this. I am conscious, however, of those houses that are already there. Some people might be paying for sites, if they do not have one they can get from a family member. There is the cost of building at the moment and the shortage of labour increases the costs further. This is one way in which we could help those people, many of whom I am representing. While we are talking about rural housing and one-off houses, I would also like to acknowledge the work the Department is currently doing and the constant engagement the Minister is having with us, as members of the Fianna Fáil parliamentary party to try to liberalise the rural planning process. That work is very important because we need to see more of those rural homes, particularly for those young couples and those people abroad who I represent and went to school with, who want to come home, build in a rural parish, start their family there and start a life for themselves there.

Sentiment score: 0.21