Budget 2015 Response: Site Value Tax

The Environmental Pillar welcomes moves by the government to address the problem of developers hoarding zoned and serviced land and calls for the introduction of a site value tax.
Minister for Finance Michael Noonan today stated that a public consultation will be launched on the issues of developers allowing sites to lay derelict as they wait for prices to increase.
The Environmental Pillar, which represents 28 Irish environmental NGOs, is calling for the introduction of a site value tax to deal with the problem.
A site value tax would tax a site based on the services available to the land and the zoning. Unlike a conventional property charge, it focuses on the potential of the site whether there is a building on it or not.
It discourages empty buildings, land speculation, hoarding and over-zoning and diverts capital into productive investment and sustainable jobs.
‘In our budget submission we called for a site value tax to deal with this very issue. Our towns and cities would benefit greatly from an incentive to develop unused sites and maximise their value for the communities who live there,’ said Charles Stanley-Smith of the Environmental Pillar.