Brendan Ryan (Dublin North, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to contribute to the debate on the Bill. There are many different aspects of it in respect of which I could speak but I propose to focus on one. My colleagues, Deputies Kevin Humphreys and Dowds, will address some of the other issues to which I refer.

As the Minister is aware and as he indicated earlier, there are many houses in north County Dublin, Leinster and throughout the country which have been affected by pyrite.

The effects of pyrite have been well discussed in this Dáil term by me and a number of other Deputies. Although progress towards a resolution is slow, we are moving towards a solution. We are not yet at a stage were the pyrite problem has been solved, but at the same time we are on the verge of introducing this local property tax which is to be based on the market value of a property. How much would anyone pay for a house with a pyrite problem? We all know the answer to that question. As the residents of pyrite affected properties will say, they are unable to sell their homes at any price, which, in essence, means such properties have no market value.

I ask the Minister to introduce an amendment to allow properties with a chronic structural failure caused by either pyrite or the use of substandard materials to be made exempt from the local property tax until such time as such properties are fully remediated. Such a measure would also exempt properties in complexes such as Priory Hall in Dublin. It would be very unfair for the owners of these properties to have to pay a tax on a property that has no market value. The exemption of pyrite affected properties is also recommended in the report of the pyrite panel which was published in July. I ask the Minister to consider my request. It is within his power and gift to ensure these homeowners are given some relief at a time when they are suffering so much. It has been mentioned many times in the House by many Deputies that the overwhelming majority of people who live in pyrite affected homes bought them at or near the height of the boom. They have very high mortgages and many have young families. This has been a difficult week for these middle income families. We now have an opportunity to give them a little comfort by exempting them from the local property tax. I understand there might be some technical impediments but none that cannot be overcome with enough political will, which I believe the Minister has.

I suggest the proposed lowest valuation band be changed from €0 to €100,000 to €1 to €100,000; and that a separate category of zero valuation be added. This would allow those living in pyrite affected homes, or the residents of Priory Hall, to declare a zero value rate for their properties and be exempt from the tax. The Bill, as it stands, provides that a person who declares a zero valuation for a property will be liable to pay a €90 full-year charge. I understand this would not be acceptable. The Government needs to act for those who have been the victims of cavalier builders and the light touch building regulation that defined Fianna Fáil's period in office.

The Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Phil Hogan, is working on delivering a solution to the pyrite problem, generally. A solution will be achieved. However, until that moment comes, a gesture by the Government in the form of an exemption from the local property tax would be a tangible indication to the homeowners concerned that it is serious about addressing their problems. I look forward to the Minister's response and what I hope will be a commitment to exempt these hard-pressed householders.

The Minister said:

The Government is conscious of the very real costs and difficulties faced by people whose homes have been affected by pyrite. My colleague, the Minister for the Environment, Community and local Government has indicated that he considers that houses demonstrated to be subject to a certifiable level of pyritic heave should receive a waiver from the local property tax. I propose to address this issue in the context of the Finance Bill.

I am concerned about the phrase, "subject to a certifiable level of pyritic heave." It is proposed that householders will be required to pay for certification, but some householders may not be in a position to afford to pay for such tests. I suggest, therefore, that they be permitted to declare that their propertie have zero value. They should not be subjected to further expense to prove to Revenue that their houses have been damaged by pyrite.

The Minister referred to exemptions for properties in certain ghost estates. He should not base the exemptions on a list drawn up in respect of the household charge. Some estates have been exempted and others should be. A full review is, therefore, required.

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