Government set to hand over responsibility for collecting foreshore rents

MINISTERS are to finally end the scandal of non-payment of rents for leasing the country’s coastline which is costing taxpayers millions of euro a year.

The Government is expected to hand over responsibility for collecting foreshore licence payments from the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources to local authorities later this year after financial watchdogs sparked concern over the scale of lost revenue.

The State is losing €5 million a year in levies due to lax enforcement of rents, according to some TDs. The issue is set to spark controversy in the Dáil today as the powerful Public Accounts Committee (PAC) considers a report from the Comptroller and Auditor General which raised the alarm over the lost money.