Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour) | Oireachtas source

As the Deputy will be aware, the Bill will formally come before the House tomorrow, and the Minister of State, Deputy Harris, will take it. He took the Bill in the Seanad and there was a very constructive debate there on some of the issues Deputy Fleming is talking about. The Minister of State is approaching the Bill, as am I, with a very open mind to make it as effective as we possibly can.

There are complexities in this, because assessment of income is quite different from assessment of value. Value has a geographical meaning as well. The same property in two different locations has a different value, whereas income is standard wherever the valuation is being made, so assessing for income tax is simpler. All the points the Deputy has raised can be addressed in the context of an open debate on Committee Stage when the new valuation Bill progresses through the House.

See this speech in context