Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 31 January 2017
46. Deputy Joan Burton asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the details of grants and supports her Department proposes for the restoration of properties in rural towns and villages; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [4314/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraWill the Minister give us details of the scheme of grants and payments in respect of doing up properties in rural towns and villages? When does she propose to launch the scheme and what is the amount of money allocated to it in the current year's budget?
On 23 January , the Government's action plan for rural development, Realising our Rural Potential, was launched in Ballymahon, County Longford. The plan is a whole-of-Government initiative and contains over 270 actions across five thematic pillars, to be delivered by Government Departments, State agencies and other groups. The action plan contains a number of measures which have the objective of rejuvenating Ireland’s rural towns and villages to make them more attractive places in which to live and work and to increase their tourism potential.
As part of budget 2017, I have secured funding of €12 million for an enhanced town and village renewal scheme this year. This represents a tripling of the original 2016 baseline allocation of €4 million for the scheme. The town and village renewal scheme for 2017 will be launched shortly and towns and villages to be included in the scheme will be selected through an application and assessment process. The scheme will be funded by the Department and administered by local authorities.
As part of the scheme, I intend to launch a pilot project later in the year to encourage residential occupancy in rural towns and villages. This pilot will be launched in the second half of the year, when details of the scheme have been finalised in consultation with relevant Departments. The pilot will examine ways in which properties that are currently not in use in town centres can be renovated to allow them to be used for residential purposes. In 2016, financial support was also provided by my Department through a number of structured schemes for the conservation and protection of heritage buildings, including the built heritage investment scheme, the structures at risk fund and other initiatives operated by the Heritage Council and the OPW.
The Government’s action plan for housing and homelessness, which comes under the remit of the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government, also includes a number of schemes which support the repair or refurbishment of properties.
Can the Minister tell us the date of the launch of the scheme and where the proposed pilot will be? What is the likely number of towns, villages and parishes in which it will be located? It is very difficult for people to plan if they get a lot of soft publicity in newspapers and media about such a scheme being launched but then find they get absolutely no information at all about it. The Minister spoke of an application process. When will the application process forms and information be available? We are approaching February and this information should be made available quickly because people will have to plan and look at their finances. Otherwise there will be no movement on it this year at all.
I never said there was an application process.
The Minister said applications would be assessed. I wrote it down.
I am referring to the pilot scheme to get people back into towns and villages. I never mentioned an application process. I said I was looking at developing a pilot scheme, to be rolled out in the latter half of this year, to encourage people to take up residential occupancy in rural towns and villages. The details of the scheme will be finalised through collaboration with relevant Departments with a view to launching it in the second half of the year. I will be working with my colleague, the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government, Deputy Simon Coveney, to introduce a range of initiatives to encourage more people to live in village and town centres because if we are serious about rural regeneration we need to start with our rural towns and villages.
A package of schemes will support our rural communities in 2017, including a €12 million town and village renewal scheme.
I am confused because in the general publicity around the launch of the scheme the Minister made much of the fact that people in small towns and villages would be able to take commercially-designated premises and convert them to accommodation. She and others in Government, as well as Government backbenchers, mentioned the availability of first-time buyers' grants for people to do up properties in these towns. I am just repeating what was in the media, where a menu of items was identified. Can the Minister account to the Dáil in detail for what she is proposing? It is all over the place. Young couples in towns and villages around the country would have an interest in these schemes but they are very confused over the Minister's proposals. They need to make plans to raise finances and do other things if they are to avail of these schemes.
The tax incentive to which the Deputy refers is the help-to-buy scheme and that relates to first-time buyers of newly-built homes. I am referring to something completely different, about trying to get people back in to the centre of towns to live. I will roll out a pilot scheme in the latter half of this year.
The pilot scheme will examine grant-aiding people who want to move into vacant buildings in the centre of town. They would receive grant aid to help them to renovate the premises. It is a pilot scheme for a limited number of towns that will be selected. I have no idea yet what towns they will be, but I will decide that at a later date with the relevant agencies. I want to be very clear that it is a pilot scheme. The help-to-buy scheme is completely separate. It is under the aegis of the Department of Finance and relates to new houses.
Will the Minister set out in some detail what the proposals are?
The Deputy already had two questions. I call Deputy Ó Cuív.
Can I answer that?
This is an exception. I will give the Minister ten seconds.
Go raibh maith agat. I am working to devise that scheme. It is being worked on and if the Deputy has any suggestions I would be glad to hear them. It is a pilot scheme that will be rolled out in the latter half of this year. The details are to be decided.
