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21 February 2013

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Happy St Patrick’s Day – Here’s a tax bill for your home

A survey by the Irish League of Credit Unions found that 1.6million people have €50 or less to live on every month after their bills are paid

THE Fine Gael/Labour Government has told Sinn Féin it will be sending out its very first Family Home Tax demands to arrive just before St Patrick’s Day.

The new tax for this year will be anything from €100 upwards, depending on the valuation the state puts on your home.

This comes on top of rising mortgage costs on homes already in negative equity and after a new survey in January by the Irish League of Credit Unions found that 1.6million people have €50 or less to live on every month after their bills are paid.

Sinn Féin Finance spokesperson Pearse Doherty says:

“This week, 70,000 homeowners heard that the AIB will be increasing their variable mortgage interest rates. This comes at a time when one in four mortgages are in distress. The last thing the 180,000 mortgage holders in distress need is another letter bearing unsustainable demands.

“This extra tax will be the tipping point for many families already struggling.

Pearse Doherty adds:

“There is no sense in taxing the family home.

“Sinn Féin has proposed a genuine wealth tax on assets over €1million. This would bring in at least as much as this Family Home Tax but would be targeted at those who can afford it. The Government’s tax, on the other hand, will push many more into mortgage distress and dampen the domestic economy.”

Sinn Féin will be launching a Bill to repeal the Family Home Tax, the Sinn Féin Finance spokesperson says.

“We are calling on all parties to reflect on what receiving the letter on the week of 11th of March will mean for working people and to lend their support to our repeal bill before it’s too late. The reality of this unfair tax is now dawning on people who have already shouldered austerity budget after austerity budget.

“Once again we see a government acting in haste to implement measures that are ill-thought out and damaging to the interests of the country and economy. Once again we see a government out of touch with the impact of their policies on the ground in rural and urban Ireland.”

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