Emer Higgins (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The expansion of the LPT was parked for several years. I am glad that we are now dealing with this issue. In June 2020, the programme for Government committed to the introduction of legislation for a tax that put fairness at its heart. That is exactly what this legislation is doing. In the revaluation, most homeowners will face no increase in taxation. However, homes which were deemed new almost a decade ago, and which were deemed exempt on that basis, will be brought into the net. I appreciate and understand that there is no good time to make changes to the tax system, but our tax system must be fair and that must be at the heart of this legislation.

A lady in my constituency bought her home in Rathcoole in late 2012. Six other houses on her estate were bought just six months later. While that lady has paid her LPT bill every year for the past nine years, her neighbours on the same estate were paying nothing, because that was the tax code set up at the time. The change in this Bill will bring those homes into the system to ensure a more equitable and fairer system and to ensure discrepancies such as this do not continue. While the majority of homeowners will not see any increase on foot of this revaluation, it is important to remember that all money collected locally will now stay locally.

Currently, local property tax receipts are used to fund community services. The revenue collected funds amenities such as parks, footpaths, community centres, green spaces, housing repairs, playgrounds and team spaces. In my area in South Dublin County Council, it is primarily used to fund social housing, which everyone in this House agrees we need more of. Before I became a Deputy for Dublin Mid-West, I served as a councillor on South Dublin County Council for almost a decade. I witnessed first-hand how important all these services are and what they mean to people. Our community services have been hugely impacted by the pandemic over the past 18 months. With little income from commercial rates, our local authorities are in desperate need of funding. The LPT is an important funding stream for councils. The democratically-elected councillors have the job of setting the rate, based on the 30% differential variance.

Yesterday, Fine Gael councillors on South Dublin County Council voted to reduce local property tax for residents in Lucan, Clondalkin, Palmerstown, Newcastle, Rathcoole, Saggart and Brittas. Those councillors voted to reduce the local property tax by 15% when the new rate comes in. This past year and a half has given us all a brand-new appreciation for our outdoor spaces, our local facilities and our community centres. Whether through local Tidy Towns initiatives, housing repairs and-or footpaths and tree maintenance, we want to be able to continue improving our community spaces and to uphold those standards. Some people live on estates where substantial management fees are being paid for upkeep and maintenance, and it is only right that these fees should be taken into consideration when it comes to the local property tax bill. I welcome that individual local authorities will, under this new legislation, be able to provide a concession on management fees from their LPT revenue. The council will have the discretion in cases like this to provide rebates on the tax where management fees are paid. I welcome that measure because it is fair and fairness is at the heart of this legislation.

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