Charges must not become easy way out

THE Irish Concrete Federation (ICF), which represents the quarry and concrete industries, has in recent weeks taken out full page advertisements in newspapers around the country to highlight the impact of the imposition of local development charges and levies.

The industry contends these charges will lead to price hikes of up to 20%.

It says the increase in costs will be passed on to consumers, which will lead to spiralling inflation, and drive the cost of houses further out of the range of first-time buyers.