‘No legal block’ to land price control

THERE is no constitutional obstacle to controlling the price of land for housing, an Oireachtas committee will reveal later this month.

Taoiseach Bertie Ahern will be told he should impose high taxes or development levies on land hoarders who make vast profits from ezoning decisions.

Mr Ahern will also be told local authorities should be given the power to acquire land from speculators for much less than its market value by paying just 25% of agricultural prices even if the property is zoned for residential use.

This could be achieved if the Government empowered local authorities to acquire development land based on its current use rather than its zoning status.

These will be the key recommendations of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Constitution draft report due to be delivered to Mr Ahern before the end of March.

Mr Ahern told the Fianna Fáil Árd Fheis last September that Government was determined to punish developers who hoard land and force them to meet housing needs. He indicated the Government, if necessary, would seek a constitutional amendment to do this.

Mr Ahern asked the committee 18 months ago to investigate how more land could be freed up for housing without breaching the constitutional right to own private property.

Committee chairman Deputy Denis O'Donovan said the draft report will tell Mr Ahern there is no constitutional obstacle to the introduction of specific measures to control the price of land.

The committee's draft report also calls for revision of the "Byzantine" law governing compulsory acquisition of land.

The Construction Industry Federation (CIF), which represents most builders, said it did not wish to comment on the report until it was published fully.

However, CIF spokesman Kevin Gilna said: "The construction industry has met and exceeded the demands placed on it by the housing market over the past 10 years and we will work with the system to see how it can be improved."