HOUSING BILL MEANS THAT HUGE SOCIAL HOUSING INVESTMENT CAN GET UNDERWAY - KENNY

Posted on June 18, 2015 3:34 PM   |   Permanent Link   

Speaking on the Urban Regeneration and Housing Bill 2015

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this important Bill. The purpose of this Bill is primarily focused on addressing housing supply-related issues with a view to facilitating increased activity in the housing construction sector, particularly in the Dublin area where the housing supply shortage is particularly acute. By targeting vacant and empty sites, I believe that urban regeneration will become more common and that instead of the blight of waste land in our communities, we will instead see positive developments adding to our communities.

The main provisions of the Bill are the revision of the Part V arrangements on social and affordable housing as well as retrospective application of reduced development contribution charges, which is being done given the changes to the economy which makes previous charges totally unrealistic. The introduction of a vacant site levy to incentivise urban regeneration and the provision of housing in central urban areas.

The Bill gives effect to a number of actions outlined in the Government's Construction 2020 Strategy which require legislative underpinning. The Bill will enable planning authorities to adopt measures to incentivise the use and development of vacant sites in urban areas. The Bill provides that from 1st January 2019, planning authorities will be empowered to apply an annual vacant site levy of 3% of the market value of vacant sites exceeding 0.1 hectares, which in the planning authority's opinion were vacant in the preceding year, in areas identified by the planning authority in its development plan or local area plan for residential development or regeneration development.

Part 2 of the legislation concerns the Vacant Site Levy. Section 5 of this provides for the definition of a vacant site. In the case of residential land it means a site in an area where there is a need for housing, the site is suitable for provision of housing and is vacant. In the case of regeneration land it means a site that is vacant and has an adverse effect on existing amenities including a diminution in the amenity. A site is any area of land exceeding 0.1 hectares but does not include a structure that is a person's home.

There is also provision for the establishment and maintenance of a vacant sites register from 2017 onwards, and I welcome this. It will ensure that vacant sites are known and the existence of a list should provide a baseline for action to be taken in terms of levies, which should in turn incentivise work to be progressed on vacant sites.
This part of the legislation outlines specific criteria to be used by the planning authority, or An Bord Pleanála on appeal, for determining whether or not (i) there was a need for housing in an area, (ii) a site was suitable for housing, and (iii) the site, being vacant, had adverse effects on existing amenities in the area or on the character of the area. I believe that this is very important as it provides a socially oriented framework for deciding what is a vacant site and what is not, and this ensures that the levy is not all about land parcels and their financial value - in this, we are seeing a turn away from the Celtic Tiger model of money and land running roughshod over social cohesion and community.

With effect from 1 January 2019 and every year thereafter, a planning authority shall, in respect of the preceding year, charge a vacant site levy on the market value of a site on the owner of each site included in its vacant site register. The levy shall be payable, in arrears, on demand or by instalments if agreed by the planning authority. The levy shall continue to be payable annually until the site is developed or brought into use at which time the site will be removed from the vacant site register.

The vacant site levy shall be 3% of the market value of the vacant site. However, where the value of the mortgage or other security on the site is greater than the market value of the site, in other words, in a negative equity situation, a zero rate of levy shall apply. There is also provision made in the legislation to appeal the demand for payment of the levy to An Bord Pleanála on the grounds that the site was not a vacant site in the year concerned.

Where An Bord Pleanála determines that a site was not a vacant site, it shall notify the planning authority concerned, who shall remove the relevant entry from the register and cancel the demand made. An owner of a site may also appeal on the grounds that the amount of the levy has been incorrectly calculated. Also where An Bord Pleanála determines the amount of the levy has been incorrectly calculated, it shall notify the correct amount to the planning authority concerned, who shall revise the demand accordingly.

I wish to refer to the amendments in this legislation that are being made to Part V of the Planning and Development Act of 2000 which deals with social and affordable housing. Informed by a recent review of the Part V provisions, the Bill provides that, in future, the focus of Part V will be on the delivery of social housing, with a requirement for up to 10% social housing in developments in excess of 9 units. In the operation of these revised arrangements, the priority will be to secure social housing units on-site; the making of cash payments in lieu of social housing is to be discontinued and I warmly welcome this.

The point of Part V is to deliver social housing - the old approach of developers effectively buying their way out of this requirement was not helpful in the delivery of social housing, particularly in the Celtic Tiger era, and I am glad that it is coming to an end as a key component of the range of delivery mechanisms that will be required to achieve the targets set out in the Government's Social Housing Strategy 2020 - Support, Supply and Reform.
Under this legislation, a planning authority, in preparing its housing strategy, will be required to consult with approved housing bodies in its functional area and to have regard to relevant housing policies of the Government or any Minister. It also halves to 10%, the percentage of land zoned for residential use, or for a mixture of residential and other uses, that must be provided for social and affordable housing. Retaining the legal provision in relation to affordable housing provides a robust and constitutionally tested legislative mechanism for the future provision of affordable housing.

Previous affordable housing schemes have all been stood down since 2011 and there is no intention of providing any scheme in the immediate future. Due to the urgent need for social housing provision, it is essential that the current focus of Part V agreements be placed entirely on social housing output. We simply have to get many more social housing units built - the housing crisis in Dublin, in my Dublin North East constituency, and elsewhere is very severe to be perfectly honest and it must be tackled as a priority as quickly as possible. I understand that it is intended to issue a statutory Ministerial Policy Directive under section 29 of the Principal Act to planning authorities directing that, until the issue of a further Ministerial Directive, developers should fulfil their Part V obligation in the form of social housing only. Affordable housing provision shall not be agreed to by planning authorities under Part V until the issue of a further Ministerial Directive.

Part V of the legislation amends section 95 of the Act of 2000 by requiring a planning authority, to have regard to the overall strategy for the proper planning and sustainable development of the area of the development plan when ensuring sufficient and suitable land is zoned for residential use, or for a mixture of residential and other uses, and I support this, as planning authorities need to ensure that the communities within their remit are well balanced and factor in the needs of those communities.

The transfer of completed units on other land not subject to the planning permission is also provided. This allows social housing units to be delivered in another location, in the event that the development that is the subject of the planning permission does not meet the social housing or mixed tenure needs of the local authority. Provision is also made for the Part V obligation to be fulfilled by developers through long term leasing of properties and rental accommodation availability agreements. These latter Part V options reflect amendments that were provided in section 38 of the Planning and Development (Amendment) Act 2010, but not commenced.

I would like to conclude by saying that it is Labour in government who are addressing the housing crisis by pumping massive resources into constructing new units, which will start to come on stream in the next couple of years.

I am proud to support this legislation and I commend Minister Alan Kelly for his hard work in this area. Given the scale of the housing crisis, I do think that this legislation needs to be supported. I commend the Bill to the House.