Danny Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Some people are happy enough with the budget and more people are not happy campers today because of certain elements, especially the increase in the stamp duty on commercial sites. It will hurt farmers who want to buy a piece of land. Farmers who are over 40 years of age who are trying to get on, in many cases find that the only way they can improve their situation is to increase their landholding. This seems to be the way it is as they have to increase output all the time. I have had a number of farmers on to me today and one in particular, having signed a contract in the last two months, is wondering if he will still be asked to pay that increase. It will mean €20,000 extra for him to pay if the new stamp duty regulations apply to him and if he does not get some concession. This man had entered into the contract and he said that if he knew that this was going to hit him he would not have gone ahead with it. He told me that every penny he had, and did not have, was pulled out to pay for the land. He was not prepared for this extra €20,000. He has asked if there will be some accommodation for the likes of him given that he has signed the contract to buy the land some months ago. This is one serious matter. The measure will hurt many farmers like him.

It will also hurt in the situation where a site is transferred from a parent to a son or daughter. If the site is valued at €40,000 or €50,000 it can mean they will have to pay some €3,000 more. Consider all the things the son or daughter must go through. He or she must get planning permission which costs, for example, €3,000 or €4,000. Taking other factors into consideration such as levies for roads, levies for water connection and ESB then he or she clearly has €22,000 or €23,000 spent before a load of concrete has been ordered or before any foundation has been dug. I do not know if enough consideration has been given to that. With regard to the increase in stamp duty on commercial sites there should be some exemption given for the transfer of a site from a parent to their children. I do not think it is currently there and I ask for this exemption. In order to get a loan from the bank the same person must pay €7,000 to an engineer to sign off the house as being built according to the planning regulations that were imposed on them.

It has also been highlighted to me today that it clearly does not pay for some people to work. Or, if they work too hard they are not being recognised for it. In order to draw down the help-to-buy loan a person must borrow more than 70% of the value of the house. The young person who may have 40% of the value of the house saved up is denied the 5% tax relief because he or she was too good. It clearly does not pay some people to work or to save.

Farmers are not happy about certain things. They are still wondering about the areas of natural constraint, ANC, payment of €1,000 that was taken off them back in 2008. Will that €1,000 payment be given back to them?

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