Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Section 31B amends section 14 of the Local Government Act 1946 to the effect that vacancy refunds in authorities where the 1946 Act applies are reduced to 50%. I previously signalled that I intended to revert to this matter and I appreciate Members' contributions to the debates both in this House and in the Dáil in the past few weeks. There are, however, numerous factors to be considered when proposing an amendment to rates legislation, including its effect on business sentiment and its impact on local government finances. I accept that the commercial property market is not homogenous and there are locations around the country where there is little or no demand for commercial premises, which means that the intentions behind introducing a reduced refund are more difficult to achieve.

I believe the best way of ensuring that local circumstances are accounted for is to provide the elected councils with the authority to tailor their vacancy refunds that best suit their own local economic circumstances. The amendment I am introducing specifically seeks to provide that elected members in all local authorities can, as a reserve function, decide an electoral district or districts within the administrative area of the county and city, where a differing rate of refund may apply. Councils can decide on the appropriate refund being any proportion downwards from 100% that should apply in each individual area, and provide that the Minister may make regulations setting out the administrative and financial procedures to apply in relation to the taking of such decisions. The underlying objective of these provisions is to allow elected members to respond to the realities of economic circumstances in their own areas.

Amendment No. 147 amends Part 3 of the schedule to provide for this new reserved function. Related amendments are also being made to the Local Government (Dublin) Act 1930 and the Cork City Management (Amendment) Act 1941 to provide for local discretion there as well because in both of these cases, the prevailing refund regime of 50% already applies. As I have explained, provision is being made to allow the local authority to provide a different proportion of refund in specific electoral districts within the authority's administrative areas. It would, of course, be open to the elected members in Dublin and Cork to apply a 50% refund regime to all electoral districts in the relevant cities, thereby maintaining the current position.