Tipperary TD Michael Lowry has condemned the concrete levy announced in the budget.
Speaking in the Dáil the Thurles Deputy said the Government must restructure the 10% levy and design an acceptable scheme
He says everyone accepts that those impacted by Mica have suffered enormously – however the decision to impose the levy will have unintended consequences.
“The cost of addressing the Mica mess has been shifted on to the young couple who are saving to build their first home or to the family who need to extend their house. This decision will exacerbate the existing housing crisis at a time when homelessness and housing demand have spiralled to record levels.
“The use of defective building blocks in peoples homes was and is a catastrophe. It was not created by the average person, they are not responsible for this appalling travesty and should not be expected to carry the cost.”
Deputy Lowry said he was not in favour of the blanket levy and questioned what efforts were made to legally pursue the quarries and developers involved.
“The Government needs to explain to the public why it is that no entity is held responsible or accountable. Government should publish its legal advice on this issue.
“The construction industry should also share some responsibility and contribute from net profits. Surely some mechanisms can be found to target and pursue the offending operators to recover monies for the state.”
