Pádraic McCormack (Galway West, Fine Gael)

The levies are supposed to be ring-fenced but different levies are applied in different counties. The Minister's county of Wicklow had one of the highest levies in the country. Is it fair that I, who live in an estate house in Renmore, can receive services without paying any development levy while a first-time buyer is forced to pay it? First-time buyers are being penalised by the Minister's theory that services should not be free. There should be the same playing pitch for everyone. Everyone has paid for these services several times over due to the stealth taxes introduced by the Government. Does the Minister accept that the only people who are now being penalised in respect of services enjoyed by everyone are first-time buyers? These people must pay a development levy which has added greatly to house prices. The Minister has avoided acknowledging that the imposition of service charges and other measures such as the increase in VAT have added to the cost of buying a house for first-time buyers. How high are development levies in the Minister's county of Wicklow?

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