Mr. Kevin James:

When the budget announcements came out we did an exercise to look at the 10% and the definition around that 10%. Given the lack of information available at the time, we looked at all the cementitious materials that could be affected in a typical house. We built up from the foundations to the slab, to the block walls and to the pre-cast lintels, sills and concrete roof tiles. When I look at the exercises being carried out, it is ensuring that we are comparing apples with apples. When you look at the total cost of the development, the site works have unique characteristics to each particular housing development. We have to look at the pro rataincrease that will have on a levy.

Since the announcement to go back down to 5%, we have found that the 5% equates to concrete block work and poured concrete only. We have had discussions with tier one housing developers, looking at the implications for them in high density schemes. We have carried out independent analyses with the quantity surveying working group to look at our costs. When I say €1,200 per unit, it is up to €1,200 per unit because every development has a unique set of characteristics.