In a submission to Louth County Council, Louth IFA Chairman Matthew McGreehan has sought a reduction in the property tax to reflect the level of services provided and to ensure that there is no further erosion of competitiveness and loss of income for farm families.
Matthew said in a statement: “The purpose of the property tax is to support the provision of local services, with the majority of the proceeds of the tax accruing to local authorities. While this should provide more autonomy to local authorities to provide appropriate services, there can be no change in the rate of the tax to compensate for a reduction, or lack of funding from other sources.
“IFA believes that the local property tax must reflect the level of local services provided, which are significantly lower in rural Ireland than those provided in urban areas. There is a strong argument, therefore, for a reduction in the property tax to reflect the lower level of services provided in rural areas.”
Matthew added: “In addition, the burden of taxation on farm families has, in common with other sectors, increased significantly in recent years. Marginal rates of tax are at a very high level and lower income farmers have been negatively affected through the introduction of the USC and the reduction in personal tax credits. Increases in the rates of capital taxes and reductions in tax-free thresholds have added to the costs of investment and asset transfer. To encourage investment and enterprise and to support overall economic recovery, there must be a reduction in the overall taxation burden and I am calling on Louth County Council to reduce the property tax next year”.
On Monday, Louth IFA held their County Executive Meeting in Darver Castle, at which Ciarán Kinney from Louth County Council was in attendance. He delivered an informative talk to farmers in which he discussed issues such as farm inspections, burning dates, storage and spreading of slurry and other important issues. There will be no County Executive Meeting in August but the Louth IFA will still be dealing with any issues farmers may have.
Talk of the Town 