“Kilkenny County Council does not have the funds to turn these homes around”: TD criticises Government over empty units

The Government has come under fire from all corners of the country after Freedom of Information (FOI) data revealed that nearly 3,000 council homes are lying empty across the state with 64 unoccupied in Kilkenny.

Taoiseach Micheál Martin responded by saying that councils are well-funded having been allocated €150m in January 2023 under the Vacant Homes Plan, part of the Housing for All strategy launched in 2021.

“Four years ago, we gave huge funding to local authorities to get rid of voids once and for all. Local councils are leaving houses empty for too long,” said the Taoiseach, speaking in Cork last week.

“Councils can’t keep on blaming the central Government all of the time. A lot of this is within their competence and within their control. Certainly, in a lot of cases, it’s dragging on too long,” he added.

Carlow-Kilkenny TD Natasha Newsome Drennan hit back in the Dáil this week, following up a press release on the issue of empty properties by accusing the government of shifting the blame and refuting the position that local councils were adequately funded.

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“Over 60 homes will remain empty throughout 2025. Almost one third have been boarded up for over a year. Dozens of families and people in dire need of housing have been blocked from a home of their own this year. While the Government will try to pass the blame on to the local council, the fault and blame lies solely at the feet of the Government and Minister for Housing,” she argued.

“The black and white reality is Kilkenny County Council does not have the funds to turn these homes around. For each vacant council home, the central Government gives the council a mere €11,000 to get that home fit for tenancy. This shows how utterly removed the Government is from the real cost of building works.”

“It is an insult to the council and the people of Kilkenny. This housing crisis is devastating families and workers across the state. To see dozens of council-owned homes lying empty across the county drives home that this is not a priority for Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. If there was political will, local councils would be appropriately funded and not given the pittance they are currently receiving.”

“It is laughable for the Government to say housing is its number one priority. We are in the middle of a housing crisis. It’s time to start acting like it,” she concluded.

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