Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I will be proposing a further Report Stage amendment to ensure amounts of ready-to-point concrete are measured in cubic metres within a declaration to request exemption from the levy on the first supply or so much of that first supply as is utilised for the manufacture of precast concrete products. Again, we will share the details of that in advance.

I understand the points made by the Deputy but all of these individual decisions add up. The Deputy makes the case that we do not need this revenue now. Hopefully, we will not need this revenue in the future but it is important that where the State makes a decision to commit to a level of expenditure of the order of what we have committed to here, we can at least point to a revenue stream that will make a contribution to that. A figure of €25 million per year is not insignificant. It is an important contribution and having that principle reflected in Government policy and the legislation we brought forward is important. All of these revenue streams add up. I accept the Deputy's point that it comes at a time when the cost of construction is high and we have seen significant construction materials inflation, which is easing. However, we are all very conscious that the cost of building a home is expensive. This levy does not just apply to the construction of homes but my fundamental point is where we make a decision to commit an enormous amount of taxpayers' money, it is important at the level of principle that we can point to a revenue stream that over time will make a contribution towards those costs. This is fundamentally what this levy does and I stand over the decision. I think it is the right policy at this time and I look forward to seeing its implementation over the period ahead.