House levies slashed as councillors fear backlash
Seventeen local authorities have cut the development levies by half in some cases and by a massive two thirds in Wicklow down from €17,500 to €5,000.
Environment Minister Martin Cullen has ordered all local authorities to bring in the Developer Contribution Scheme by March 10 to raise funds for infrastructure. And the Construction Industry Federation (CIF) insisted they will have to pass the levies on to new home owners.
But figures released by the CIF yesterday revealed that councillors in half the country's local authorities have not sanctioned the increases with the local elections only 12 weeks away.
Limerick City Council failed to adopt the levy by today's deadline and may not be able to introduce it for another two years.
Local councillors last night rejected claims they had refused to sanction hikes in levies because of fears of a voter backlash in the local elections.
General Council of County Councils' chairman Pat Millea said: "This is not true councillors took a responsible look at the proposed levies and brought in what they thought was most acceptable to the people."
The figures revealed five local authorities Tipperary South, Clare, Kerry, Waterford and Donegal slashed their proposed levies by about 50% following objections by local councillors.
The other counties that cut levies were: Wexford, Galway, Offaly, Wicklow, Laois, Tipperary North, Sligo, Leitrim, Kildare, Limerick, Westmeath and Fingal.
The CIF welcomed the news that the levies had been slashed substantially, saying local authorities were not obliged to show how they will be spent.
But the Department of the Environment rejected the claim and said Mr Cullen had safeguards in place to ensure an open and transparent system.