Rabbitte keen to introduce wealth tax to fund vital areas

LABOUR leader Pat Rabbitte said yesterday he wanted to introduce a new wealth tax to fund vital areas such as health and transport services.

He said that instead of increasing income taxes, a tax could be used in areas where massive wealth is generated, such as land speculation and the bloodstock industry.

Mr Rabbitte pointed out that a group of speculators charged Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council €116m for rezoned land, yet were later able to drop their claim to €47m. "All of these areas have to be looked at, rather than the facile PD-inspired assumption that it's all about personal taxes on income," he told RTÉ's News At One. He also confirmed he was considering establishing an alliance with Fine Gael ahead of the next general election, but that his immediate priority was to build up the Labour Party. "As for what strategy I might bring to a conference, that is probably four years down the road. It would make good sense to make contact with the other parties in the coalition," he said. "We've had single-party governments and multi-party governments. I haven't really thought beyond the rubric of Fine Gael and my views on that will be kept to myself until closer to the day," he said.