John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)

My Department is advancing the preparation of necessary legislation to give effect to a new charge to be levied by local authorities on non-principal private residences, as announced in budget 2009. It is expected the new Bill setting out the necessary legislative provisions will be introduced shortly and the Government's intention is to have it enacted as soon as possible thereafter. I expect this charge to make a significant contribution to local authority income in 2009.

The Government has already indicated, in light of the further deterioration in the public finances, that public expenditure provisions and revenue-increasing measures will be reviewed in the coming weeks with a view to adhering to the planned budget strategy for the current year. I am at present reviewing all my Department's expenditure programmes in consultation with the Minister for Finance. Pending the conclusion of these deliberations, it would be premature to anticipate the outcome of the review or the detail of any potential proposals that may emerge from it. However, there will of course be reductions. My intention is to rigorously assess all areas of current and capital spending with a view to prioritising those that support the maintenance of jobs, position the economy for recovery, address essential social objectives and support the achievement of key environmental compliance requirements.

The Minister for Finance has already indicated the timeframe within which the Government intends to complete the review now under way. It is open to the Opposition parties to respond to the recent invitation to put forward their own suggestions for addressing the critical economic and fiscal difficulties we face and we will give full consideration to any such proposals. In the meantime, as outlined, I will be assessing all expenditure and seeking greater efficiencies, and my Department will be consulting local authorities and the bodies under the aegis of the Department.

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