I raise the plight of first-time house buyers, given the announcement that new charges will range between €6,000 and €28,000 for development works on new houses. Two years ago a first-time house buyer was able to get a €3,000 new house grant, but that was abolished and replaced with a 1% increase in VAT to 13.5% for building materials. Now such buyers face an extra charge of between €6,000 and €28,000. This means that if an average of €10,000 is charged on each of the 50,000 houses being built, that is a direct stealth tax of €500 million which used to be funded from the public capital programme. If 60,000 houses are built, then €600 million will be raised by this direct stealth tax.
Young couples or first-time buyers making arrangements for borrowings of €130,000 or €150,000, now have to raise an extra €25,000 to €30,000. Under the stewardship of the Taoiseach and his Government, house prices have doubled in the last two years and he is now directly imposing serious, crucifying stealth charges on new house buyers and on young couples in particular. How can he stand over this? How does it measure up to his own statements about wanting more houses in rural Ireland and wanting everyone to have the opportunity to own their own home? This decision, brought in two years ago by Deputy Cullen, means there is an imposition of between €500 million and €600 million in stealth charges directly on new house owners and young couples. Where does the Taoiseach stand on that and what does he propose to do about it?
