THE GOVERNMENT has yet to carry out preliminary work that would allow it to introduce a property tax in the next budget, Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan has told Fianna Fáil colleagues.
At this week’s parliamentary party meeting, Mr Lenihan said that he was not ruling anything in or out for the budget.
However, he told party TDs and Senators that a huge amount of preliminary work would need to be done in order to introduce a property tax on a principal home, and that that preliminary work had not even started.
The comments were taken by Fianna Fáil colleagues as an indication by Mr Lenihan that he will turn his attention in the budget to water charges and other service charges rather than a property tax. A department spokesman said last night that no decision on any taxes had yet been taken.
Dublin South East TD Chris Andrews had tabled a motion opposing the property tax for the meeting. Last night he said that following Mr Lenihan’s comments he now believed that a property tax would not be brought in next December, nor indeed in 2011.
“Effectively, it’s just not happening,” said Mr Andrews. “I don’t think it’s going to be runner this year. If the Government lasts until 2012, it will not be introduced in a budget only a couple of months before a general election.”
The motion’s wording was: “Given the collapse in property values nationally and the serious difficulties that many people are experiencing in meeting repayments, the Government must give a commitment that no tax on family homes be introduced in December’s Budget.”
The issue will be discussed again at a Fianna Fáil finance committee next week. Mr Andrews’s motion was also signed by Tom Kitt, Cyprian Brady, Thomas Byrne, Charlie O’Connor and Timmy Dooley.
East Galway TD, Michael Kitt said many colleagues were opposed to any tax on the home which would impose further hardship on those who had lost jobs or who had bought at the top of the property market.