Social Democrats Dublin Central by-election candidate Daniel Ennis and housing spokesperson Rory Hearne have launched the party\u2019s Vacancy and Dereliction policy.<\/p>\n
Deputy Hearne said:<\/p>\n
\u201cProlonged vacancy and dereliction of homes cannot be tolerated in the middle of a housing crisis, especially when letting or refurbishing these homes is the cheapest, quickest, and most environmentally friendly way to quickly add to the available housing stock.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Social Democrats would immediately introduce a vacant homes tax of 10 per cent of the value of the property, which would be levied on any residential property that is vacant for over a year.<\/p>\n
\u201cLocal authorities should lead on the redevelopment of vacant and derelict buildings into affordable rental and purchase homes, and they should set up development companies to undertake this, as is being developed by Dublin City Council.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are calling for greater funding and greater capacity to use Compulsory Purchase Orders for buildings in locations where vacancy and dereliction are particularly problematic.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe would allocate a \u20ac150 million fund to capitalise this, funded via an increase in stamp duty on non-residential property.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll local authorities should have a properly staffed Vacant Property Teams, not just a lone Vacant Homes Officer as is currently the case. Ringfencing funding from the forthcoming Derelict Property Tax could greater empower councils to deal with derelict sites.\u201d<\/p>\n
Councillor Ennis said:<\/p>\n
\u201cVacancy and dereliction are massive issues on the doors in Dublin Central, but the Social Democrats\u2019 solutions are getting a great response, especially utilising Compulsory Sales Orders and funding local authorities to transform vacant and derelict sites into affordable housing stock.<\/p>\n
\u201cMany streets in the North Inner City have become emblematic of the decades of neglect and underfunding of our urban communities by Government, lined with empty, crumbling properties.<\/p>\n
\u201cToo many of our young people don\u2019t see a future here as rents and house prices continue to skyrocket while this do-nothing coalition allows housing provision to flatline, leaving the market at the mercy of developers and vulture funds.<\/p>\n
\u201cImplementing the key findings of the Dublin City Taskforce\u2019s report must be a priority for Government – Dublin\u2019s issues have been laid bare report after report, but it\u2019s time to see these findings put into action.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s time for solutions, not stagnation. Dublin deserves better.\u201d<\/p>\n
May 19th, 2026<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Social Democrats Dublin Central by-election candidate Daniel Ennis and housing spokesperson Rory Hearne have launched the party\u2019s Vacancy and Dereliction policy. Deputy Hearne said: \u201cProlonged vacancy and dereliction of homes cannot be tolerated in the middle of a housing crisis, especially when letting or refurbishing these homes is the cheapest, quickest, and most environmentally friendly […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":17803,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[554,725,793,495,10,7,510],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-17802","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-daniel-ennis","category-dublin","category-dublin-central-by-election","category-dublin-city-centre","category-housing-crisis","category-press-release","category-rory-hearne"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n