I move that this Bill be now read a Second Time. The purpose of this Bill is to extend to the 31st March, 1960, the period within which the erection, enlargement or improvement of a building must be completed in order to qualify for the two-thirds remission of rates for seven years provided by Part II of the Local Government (Temporary Reduction of Valuation) Act, 1954.
Part II of the 1954 Act provided for the granting of two-thirds remission of rates for a period of seven years on the valuation of buildings and on the total increase in valuation of existing buildings that are enlarged or improved, where the work on the construction, enlargement or improvement was begun and completed in the period commencing on 27th July, 1953, and ending on 26th July, 1956. The remission does not apply to houses erected by local authorities under the Labourers Acts or the Housing of the Working Classes Acts and owned by a local authority, houses in respect of which grants or rates remission were given under the Housing Acts, or under the Housing (Gaeltacht) Acts, farm buildings receiving relief from rates under Section 14 of the Valuation (Ireland) Act, 1852, or premises in respect of which a local authority has decided to remit rates under Section 9 of the Undeveloped Areas Act, 1952. Subject to these exceptions the remission applies to all buildings including hotels, shops, factories, offices and dwelling-houses. Where a building is enlarged during the prescribed period and in the revised valuation following that enlargement earlier improvements or additions are taken into account the remission also applies to those earlier improvements and additions.
In the years 1920 to 1939 all buildings of the type covered by the present Bill received rates remission. Between 1939 and 1953, however, the remission was confined to dwelling-houses. The 1954 Act, which was introduced by my predecessor, restored the concession of rates remission to buildings other than dwelling-houses. The intention of this Act was to expedite projects of a building or constructional character.
I am informed that the task of compiling statistics of the number of buildings which received this remission would necessitate the expenditure of a disproportionate amount of time and labour. On a rough estimate, however, it would appear that about 1,500 premises per annum receive the benefits of the Act.
When the previous Bill was being debated many members of the House felt that its period of application was too short and my predecessor indicated that the question of an extension could be considered when the period of application of the Bill expired.
All rates remissions must be met either from taxation or by other ratepayers. The concession given by the 1954 Act is met by other ratepayers, but I feel that it is a desirable one and that it does tend to accelerate building projects. This Bill, therefore, proposes the extension of the concession for a further period.