As my colleague said, we are supporting both these motions. At committee, the Minister said these exempted developments have been hugely successful. While I believe commercial units being returned as homes is a good thing, it has not reached the potential it could. We look at villages and areas that I represent like Blackpool in Cork city, one of the oldest, most historic villages and parts of Cork city. Then we have Shandon with the renowned Shandon steeple, the church and the bells. We see these communities with shops, offices and pubs boarded up and closed for decades, not years. If these exempted developments were working, we would see the return of those properties as homes. As there are still businesses in the heart of these communities, were more people brought in to live in the communities, they would safeguard the existing business and bring more people in. That is what we want to see. We want to see communities flourish. We do not want to see communities blighted by dereliction, vacancy and boarded-up properties. Therefore, turning commercial businesses into homes in places like Blackpool and Shandon Street can be a really positive thing for the community. This is not just in Cork. We have areas like this in Drogheda, Tipperary and all across Dublin. It is in every town, village and city where we need to see more homes being delivered. If we are going to hit our 2030 targets, the best homes to deliver are homes that already exist. They might be shops, offices or pubs but if they are lying empty, turning them into homes is a win for communities, for the environment and, most importantly, for families out there who are crying out for homes. This week, the Minister announced additional funding for vacant above-the-shop units to turn them into homes. We have been raising for years the issue of above-the-shop units that have been lying empty when they should have been turned into homes. That is what we want to see. This is all about delivery and the quickest, easiest way to deliver is to deliver homes and buildings that already exist. What we do not want to see - and what I certainly do not want to see - is speculators, investors and vulture funds coming in and getting the money that has now been earmarked, namely, a maximum of €140,000 per multi-unit or multi-apartment building. We want to see them delivered as affordable and cost-rental properties. If the Government is making this type of investment, speculators should not be coming in then and charging huge rents when they turn these buildings around. That may be something the Minister needs to look at as well in order that they are not just taking all the money from the State and then making huge profits. If they are going to supported by the State, they should be supporting communities and ensuring the rents they charge are reasonable. We have so much dereliction and vacancy and so many units above the shops that could really make a difference. That is why we are saying the only way for this to happen and the only way to deliver secure affordable homes for people is to use the units that already exist. It is not the only way but it is the quickest way. We support these motions. In the areas I represent, were the Minister to walk around Blackpool, Shandon Street or North Main Street, he could see these areas are crying out for investment and would be great communities for people to live in.

Sentiment score: 0.20