Donegal Deputy Charlie McConalogue has reiterated his strong opposition to the Government’s property tax plans, saying families in mortgage difficulty simply cannot afford to pay hundreds of euro in extra taxes on their home.
The Fianna Fáil TD was speaking as the Revenue Commissioners prepare to issue letters to homeowners Donegal and across the country from next week.
“It is deeply unfair to expect homeowners, who cannot afford their home as it is, to pay hundreds of euro in extra tax on that home. These are people who have already paid significant stamp duty, are now deep in negative equity and are struggling to pay their mortgages and household bills,” said Deputy McConalogue.
“I strongly believe that it is wrong to tax the family home. I also believe it is completely wrong to introduce any form of property tax at time of unprecedented mortgage crisis and a complete failure on behalf of Government and the banks to address this crisis.
“Under Fine Gael and Labour’s plan, a home in Donegal worth €150,000 will pay approximately €315 in property taxes. I have spoken to so many families who are genuinely distressed about how they will afford to pay this, at a time when they can barely pay their mortgage and other household bills.
“The latest mortgage arrears figures out this week show that one in every four mortgages are in some form of difficulty. In the last quarter alone, an additional 6,500 families have fallen into mortgage distress. Behind these figures are families who are trying to lead normal lives while knowing there is a real prospect they may lose their home. The Government cannot in good conscience hit these families with property taxes on top of everything else, while failing to address the ever deepening mortgage crisis.”