Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 15 February 2022
269. Deputy Dara Calleary asked the Minister for Finance if homeowners that have made energy upgrade investments in recent years will be able to avail of tax rebates given the increased level of supports now available; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8071/22]
View answerOne of the actions set out in the recently published Climate Action Plan is that the potential for new tax measures to support retrofit will be explored. In the normal course of events, the introduction of any new tax expenditure measure generally takes place in the context of the annual Budget and Finance Bill process.
In relation to the specific question posed by the Deputy, it would also be usual that proposals for tax expenditure measures would be assessed in accordance with my Department's Tax Expenditure Guidelines. These make clear that it is important that any policy proposal which involves tax expenditures should only occur in limited circumstances where there are demonstrable market failures, where a tax-based incentive is more efficient than a direct expenditure intervention; and that the potential for deadweight and additionality are considered.
In terms of the most efficient use of scarce resources, a proposal along the lines of that mentioned by the Deputy would be likely to involve a very high nugatory element. As such, the grounds for introducing such a measure would not be strong.
