Stamp duty: FF puts builders first

FINANCE Minister Brian Cowen thinks Fine Gael policy on stamp duty is not well thought out and that it would result in many job losses in the future.

His rationale is that because FG plans a phased implementation of stamp duty reform over a three-year period, potential home-buyers will hold off until it is fully phased in. Mr Cowen is concerned that developers may then decide not to build more houses as long as the demand is not there.

This shows that profiteering by developers is far higher on the Fianna Fáil agenda than the ability of honest, hardworking people to afford their own homes. It brings to light also FF’s ignorance of the importance of building a community, and not just an estate of houses.