Dessie Ellis (Dublin North West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

It is important to realise that the local property tax has only been frozen until 2016 and that after that date, we will see a huge jump in the charge across the country. This will affect everyone but, in particular, the least well-off in society, local authority tenants. It is not good enough to say it is at the discretion of local authorities as to whether the charge should be imposed. The Government should issue a diktat to local authorities that the imposition of this tax is unacceptable. We need to protect those who find themselves in this position. The cost of housing has risen considerably and we are now heading towards another property bubble. This issue is ongoing and the tax people will pay after 2016 will be huge. People are struggling and have seen a series of taxes imposed on them, including the household charge, water charges and others. Many tenants are on social welfare payments, while many are lone parents. Many of those who are working are in low paid jobs. These are not the rich people who can afford to handle a huge increase or an extra charge. Tenants did not anticipate paying this charge because the house belongs to the local authority. It looks as if, however, that tenants will end up paying it.

In some cases, councillors voted to reduce the property tax by 15%. This happened in Dublin and other areas. Sinn Féin councillors instigated this move in Dublin City Council and other areas, but they were opposed by Labour Party councillors at the time. This was remarkable considering that they were supposed to represent the people.

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