Michael D has an idea to get some use out of Ireland’s ghost estates

If there is one thing we are not short of here, its empty houses. Now President Michael D Higgins has an idea for how we can fill some of them, at least temporarily.

One of the biggest headaches left behind by the demise of the Celtic Tiger, from a long list, is ghost estates. Half finished housing developments with a handful, or even nobody, living in them are a scar on the countryside and a misery for those who do live in them.

They are expensive to maintain as the developer is almost always gone bust and with 290,000 houses declared empty in the recent census, there is an awful lot of them knocking around.

Up to now the only suggestions we have heard is to knock them down but our man in the Aras, Michael D Higgins, has a better idea; let emigrants come home and take a holiday in them.

Speaking in London yesterday, Michael D expanded on an idea floated last week about allowing Irish people who now lived abroad, but who couldn’t afford a trip home to the old sod, to be given one of these unoccupied houses to stay in for their holidays.

The Sunday Independent carry his quotes today. “If you do have accommodations and, faced with all of the options as to their use, before one would consider demolition, certainly I would have thought that [using them for emigrants] in some cases - realising as well that some people will want to move back where they have a network that is supportive and social services that are adequate," he said.

"Others may want to do so for just a shorter period of time and it is something which is well worthy of consideration.

"When we really have a problem at home, such as housing estates that are near finished, unfinished or whatever, we should really put any resource we have into any possible solution, which may in fact make the lives of those who are Irish people better."

Let’s face it, anything is better than letting these houses rot and if it brings some extra visitors into the country, ones who will spend a little anyway, then it’s a good idea.

We await to see if anybody in Government listens to El Presidente’s idea.