IPAV PRESS RELEASE |
19th JUNE 2006 |
AUCTIONEERS SEEK CLARITY
ON NEW ‘GREEN TAX’ CERTIFICATE |
| Auctioneers today (Monday) called on the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government to clarify the situation surrounding the introduction of the proposed new Energy Savings Directive or ‘green tax’. |
| The first part of the Directive, which will require all new houses to provide an energy usage certificate, is due to come into effect on January 1 next. The certificate will provide details of how much it costs to heat a house over a year and break down the home’s energy usage. |
| IPAV Chief Executive Fintan McNamara said Minister Dick Roche should immediately move to clarify many aspects of the certificate. |
| “There is total confusion out there as to how much the certificate will cost, who is going to pay for it, what period of time the certificate will cover and so on,” he said. “All we are getting at the moment are heresay second-hand reports. What is needed now is for the Minster to issue a full and comprehensive statement which covers all aspects of the new green tax. |
| “For example, given the vendor will likely have to supply the certificate, there should be a provision protecting him/her from litigation in the future. It may be in the best interest of the purchaser to acquire a separate certificate.” |
| Mr McNamara said it is likely that the full force of the Directive would only apply to buildings over 1,000 square metres. |
| “While there is generally support in the property industry for measures that will save energy, it behoves the Minister to provide full and frank details on the certificate so that those who have the responsibility for its implementation have the necessary time to prepare. |
| He also stated that Ireland had outperformed the Scandinavian countries by a factor of five in recent decades and that calls to imitate that model would not enhance incomes and employment in Ireland. |
| He added that Ireland has inherited a plethora of policies and agencies from the era of 17% unemployment and one million at work. These were utterly inappropriate with two million at work and 4% unemployment. A massive reduction in these agencies and schemes was required. |
| “The resources saved should be handed back in tax cuts because the market economy had solved most of the problems which these agencies and schemes were established to solve,” he said. |
| Ends |
| 19 June 2006 |
| For further information contact: |
| Fintan McNamara on 01 - 6785685 or |
| Tim Ryan Communications on 087 - 2471423 |