Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions
Dail Éireann — 2026-01-15
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Peter Burke (FG), Longford-Westmeath

The fair deal scheme has its own primary legislation that underpins it. Any unintended consequences can be looked at through that prism. We absolutely do not want any policy that would go against the Government's incentivisation with regard to dereliction and vacancy. One can see the very significant moves we have made by bringing 20,000 homes back into use, supported by the vacant property refurbishment grant. We can see the extensions of that, particularly for over-the-shop living and through the croí cónaithe scheme where people can get a grant to bring a derelict property back into use, as well as grants from the SEAI. There is €100,000 collectively between both grants to bring derelict properties back into use. For those who are in a situation where they are embarking on drawing down the fair deal scheme, we will also have to look and ensure that we do not see properties vacant for a long time. We have to respect the wishes of relatives too. This is very important in that process. We will work with the House in the context of the pre-legislative scrutiny report and when the legislation comes before the Dáil.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-01-15/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:30+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-01-15