Farmers 'worried sick' over 'unjust' zoned land tax, Dáil told
'They are now being caught up in this residential tax, even though they are not hoarding land.' Picture: iStock
Farmers are “worried sick” about what they may face when an “unjust” residential zoned land tax takes effect from 2024, the Dáil was told.
Galway East independent TD Seán Canney, who highlighted the issue, said farmers are private landowners. They are not builders. They own the land to farm it and try to make a living from it. They do not hoard it as an investment.
He said the fact farmers are completely unaware some of their land is being zoned for residential purposes leaves them in a very precarious predicament.
In Killarney, of more than 200 acres of land zoned for residential use, only about 10 acres are being built on each year.
Some farmers will find themselves paying this tax for the next 20 years until the land is used up, he said.
Mr Canny said the way land is being zoned is through a desktop study being done by the local authorities.
They are not looking on the ground or talking to owners to see whether the land will become available.
"Their land has been zoned by the local authority without their knowledge or consent. They are fearful that they will be paying tax from money they are trying to eke out of the land in order to stave off something that is beyond their control,” he said.
Mr Canny said farming organisations are very concerned about the issue and have tried to discuss it with different departments.
The Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage tell them it is an issue for the Revenue Commissioners and the Revenue Commissioners tell them it is a local authority housing issue, he said, calling for clarity from the minister.
Public Expenditure and Reform Minister Michael McGrath said everyone agrees there is a housing crisis and a huge challenge to deliver homes all over the country.
He outlined the position when locally elected members agree on their development plan and decide, having taken advice on board, that a land bank is suitable and appropriate and is situated in an area where land is serviced and close to amenities.
He said it is to be expected the Government would seek to ensure that, wherever possible, that land bank is developed in accordance with the locally adopted county development plan.
Landowners can appeal the decision of the local authority to retain their land on the map to An Bord Pleanála.
As a once-off provision during 2022 and 2023, landowners may also request the local authority to rezone their land to remove it from the scope of the tax.
Mr McGrath said the tax measure would be levied at 3% of the market value of the zoned land. The local authorities have gone through an extensive mapping process at this point.
Mr Canny said land has been zoned in Tuam where there is no access to the land to build a house on it.
“They have no interest in hoarding or making a bundle of money out of it. They are not trying to turn it over to make a pound,” he said.
Mr McGrath said there is no problem with engagement, which should always take place between stakeholders. Of course, farmers have issues with this measure and will be affected by it.
“As the deputy said, where land is never going to be developed, not for hoarding reasons but for other reasons, such as that it cannot be accessed, there is no point in letting it remain on a county development plan map as zoned land suitable for development.
"The easiest way out of all that is to de-zone that land. That will completely remove it from the scope of the zoned land tax. There will be no issue with engagement in that respect,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Irish Farmers Association is set to continue with its campaign for a complete overhaul of the proposed tax, including an exemption for productive farmland.
Farm Business chair Rose Mary McDonagh, speaking after attending the Dáil discussion, said the Government was not fully grasping the reality that this “penal tax” will force farmers to sell land they rely upon to generate an income for themselves and their families.
“It’s illogical to press ahead with this poorly-designed, ill-targeted, disproportionate tax on farm families, particularly when the situation differs across the country,” she said.
Finance Minister Pascal Donohoe, replying to a previous Dáil question from Mayo Fine Gael TD Alan Dillon, said the overall amount of land is a low share of the total that will be taxed under this new measure. That will be of little comfort or perhaps relevance to the owners of this land.
“The tax that is being introduced provides for a process to change the zoning of the land through which landowners can ask for it to have non-residential status.
“That is really what needs to happen. Given the housing needs that we have, where land is zoned for new housing, we want to build on it,” he said.
