Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 26 February 2026
374. Deputy Conor Sheehan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of properties and sites under the Derelict Sites Act 1990, by local authority for each of the years 2022 to 2026, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15748/26]
View answer375. Deputy Conor Sheehan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the amount outstanding in levies that were levied but not collected under the Derelict Sites Act 1990 between 2022 and 2026, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15749/26]
View answer376. Deputy Conor Sheehan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the implementation process and the exact timelines for the derelict property tax; the engagement he had with local authorities on the public of preliminary registers of derelict properties; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15750/26]
View answer377. Deputy Conor Sheehan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of derelict properties, by local authority area, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15752/26]
View answer378. Deputy Conor Sheehan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if his Department has received the responses from the local authorities yet; when the derelict sites levy collection data for 2025 will be published; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15753/26]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 374, 375, 376, 377 and 378 together.
The Derelict Sites Act 1990 imposes a general duty on every owner and occupier of land to take all reasonable steps to ensure that land does not become, or continue to be, a derelict site as defined in the Act. The Act also imposes a duty on local authorities to take all reasonable steps, including the exercise of appropriate statutory powers, to ensure that any land within their functional area does not become, or continue to be, a derelict site.
Each local authority maintains a Derelict Sites Register under section 8 of the Act for sites which they consider are derelict under the Act. Sites entered on the Derelict Sites Register are subject to an annual Derelict Sites Levy of 7% of the market value of the property which will continue to apply until the site is rendered non-derelict.
Local Authorities are required to submit an annual return to my Department providing information on the operation of the Derelict Sites Act 1990 in their functional areas. The figures requested are in the attached table from 2022 to 2024. The derelict sites returns for 2025 will be collected from the local authorities in Quarter 2 of 2026. Derelict Site returns for 2024 are also available here: www.gov.ie/en/department-of-housing-local-government-and-heritage/publications/annual-returns-for-2024-received-from-local-authorities-under-the-derelict-sites-act-1990/.
The placing of sites on the Derelict Sites Register and the collecting of levies on those sites is part of the overall process that Local Authorities undertake with the owners of derelict sites they identify. Local Authorities will engage directly with site owners in the early stages of the use of the Derelict Sites Act before the site is formally listed on the Register. This direct engagement can often lead to resolution of the dereliction issues by agreement between the Local Authority and the landowner involved, which can lead to significant variation in the number of sites being formally placed on the Register across local authorities. Local Authorities have been provided with additional resources, including Town Regeneration Officers and Vacant Homes Officers, in order to enable an increased focus on tackling vacancy and dereliction issues.
The introduction of a Derelict Property Tax (DPT) was announced in Budget 2026 and is confirmed in Governments’ new national housing strategy, Delivering Homes, Building Communities, under Action 4.1 - ‘A new derelict property tax will be introduced, administered and collected by the Revenue Commissioners’. This tax will replace the Derelict Sites Levy currently operated by the local authorities under Part III of the Derelict Sites Act, 1990 whereby the Levy is imposed annually on sites present on local authority Derelict Sites Registers and is collected by the local authority. The rate of the Derelict Property Tax is yet to be determined but it is envisaged that the tax rate would not be lower than the current 7% Derelict Sites Levy rate.
Subject to the necessary legislation being introduced in Finance Bill 2026, preliminary registers will be published by local authorities in 2027. Local authorities will continue to have a role in the process, as updating and maintaining their Derelict Sites Registers will continue to remain the responsibility of the local authorities.
Derelict Sites levies that remain outstanding and owed to the local authority when the new tax is introduced will remain as a charge on the properties concerned and remain the responsibility of each local authority to collect.
Action 4.3 of Delivering Homes, Building Communities confirms that ‘Local authorities will increase the number of sites on the Derelict Sites Registers and increase the enforcement and collection of unpaid levies.’ My Department is engaging with the local government sector in relation to the operation of the Derelict Sites Act and implementation of the Actions related to Dereliction in the housing strategy.
A wide package of measures have been brought forward by Government to address dereliction in recent years. These measures include the provision of Vacant Homes Officers and Town Regeneration Officers in local authorities, the implementation of the Vacant Homes Action Plan and related resourcing and funding supports. This funding includes Call 3 of the Urban Regeneration and Development Fund which provides a €150 million revolving fund for local authorities to acquire vacant or derelict properties and sites for re-use or sale. The Fund is replenished from the proceeds received from the sale or reuse of properties, allowing a rolling fund for each local authority to tackle vacancy and dereliction.
In addition, the Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant provides up to €70,000 in grant support to bring derelict properties back into long term use as homes. There has been significant interest in the grant since its launch, with over 15,600 applications made to local authorities to date and over €230 million of grant funding paid out across the country. In December, I announced a new enhanced support package of up to €140,000 to bring vacant ‘above shop’ property in our cities, towns and villages into use as homes, which will be made available in Q1 this year.
Derelict buildings and sites are a blight on local communities that undermine local pride of place, encourage antisocial behaviour and impact negatively on the local economy. The range of existing initiatives and funding mechanisms established by the Government are successfully reducing the levels of vacancy and dereliction nationally. The implementation of new measures identified by the Government will further accelerate progress in eliminating dereliction, and increase housing supply across the country.
number of properties and sites under the Derelict Sites Act 1990
