Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

There are other things that are completely different from what was otherwise anticipated, such as the cap. This scheme has been evolving in the past two years.

The concept of the scheme is to get people back to the city. Yes, it is intended to get people living in cities but also to get life back into parts of the city. It is not a scheme that has been drawn up by Department of Finance officials in Merrion Street. It has been done in conjunction with local authorities. We have been having conversations with local authorities in terms of what they want. Local authorities are supportive of these moves.

I take the point that Deputy Doherty makes, and it is something we may return to on Report Stage. I am happy to get him more information on this. We do not want to have a scenario where somebody is exploiting the scheme for commercial gain. That is not principle of the scheme. That is not where we are trying to target the tax relief. We have imposed a €200,000 cap on the tax relief. It is probably a requirement of EU State aid approval for commercial development in a designated area. It will help to get life back into our cities.

The scheme is not yet in operation because we are waiting for approval from Europe. We have done the cost benefit analysis. The measures in this section, which amount to an amendment of the Principal Act, will extend the number of dwelling that will be eligible, which is ultimately good. The composition of dwellings will alter from area to area and we are working with the local authorities on this aspect and we have put a cap on the tax relief to prevent the exploitation of the scheme