Any issues in relation to Shanganagh Castle open prison are primarily a matter for my colleague the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform. However, as a general principle, the Government is committed to the identification of lands in public ownership which may be suitable for housing projects. In 2000, the Government decided to establish a National Public Property Register, under the aegis of the Department of Finance. The objective of this register is to assemble information on lands and buildings in the ownership of Departments and State agencies, including non-commercial State bodies, health boards, local authorities and certain education bodies in order to identify under utilised land and to provide a basis for the consideration of the appropriate use of these resources.
Land which is suitable for housing could either be sold to local authorities for social and affordable housing or sold for private housing with the revenues used to the support other State services. In the latter case, the provisions of Part V of the Planning and Development, Act 2002, in relation to social and affordable housing would apply. My Department has encouraged local authorities to acquire land in order to address increasing housing need. Local authorities have borrowed some €430 million since 1999 for land acquisition for housing, including land acquired from public agencies.
