SDLP MLA Mark H Durkan has said the Executive failure to tackle the growing number of vacant properties and to review the ineffective Empty Homes Strategy is a missed opportunity and an insult to the 47,000 applicants in the North waiting for a place to call home.
In response to an Assembly Question tabled by Mr Durkan, the Department of Finance revealed there are currently 21,081 vacant properties across the North.
Said the Foyle MLA: “It is unfathomable that thousands of properties lay empty across the region, with numbers continuing to rise, all while record levels of people are experiencing homelessness.
“It is likely that the number of vacant properties is much higher given that there is no requirement for owners to register their properties as empty.
“The potential of bringing these homes back into use cannot be overstated, it could be a key factor in alleviating the housing crisis.
“It is a common sense solution, particularly in the context of wastewater challenges which is hampering the construction of over 19,000 homes.
“After waiting five years for a Housing Supply Strategy it’s a disgrace that addressing empty homes hasn’t been given a mention by the Executive, not even as a footnote.
“If the Executive is serious about tackling the growing demand for housing, it is unacceptable that such a pivotal cog has been overlooked.
“For the thousands of individuals and families waiting in dire need for a place to call home, that any property should be lying empty is unforgivable.
“Ministers here cannot bemoan bad budgets as a contributory factor for the housing crisis when zero action has been taken on empty homes.
“The Executive must look towards employing a provision similar to the Scottish Empty Home Partnership, which has brought over 11,000 properties back into use within the last 14 years.
“The SDLP is calling for immediate action to ensure that vacant properties are brought back into use to help families in need and ease the housing crisis across the North.
“It will also help to prevent dereliction and play an important role in regenerating communities. The Executive must act on this issue.”
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