At this evening’s meeting of Dublin City Council, People Before Profit will oppose the Ruling Group (Fine Gael, Labour, Fianna Fáil, Green Party) plan to increase the Local Property Tax (LPT) by 15%, and will instead table a resolution calling for the maximum allowable reduction of 15%.
Cllr Conor Reddy, People Before Profit group leader on the Council, said:
“The LPT is a tax on people’s family homes, not on the wealthy. House prices in Dublin are rising rapidly, pushing many households into higher tax bands, but ordinary people’s incomes are going in the opposite direction. They’re paying more tax without any increase in their ability to pay or massive improvement in services. It’s fundamentally unfair.”
“Rather than squeezing working people and pensioners in the middle of a cost of living crisis, the Council should be demanding proper central government funding and collecting the money it’s already owed.”
Cllr Reddy highlighted the €35 million in unpaid vacant site levies in Dublin City, some dating back as far as 2018, as well as millions more in uncollected derelict site levies and unpaid development contributions from private developers.
Cllr Hazel de Nortúin, People Before Profit rep for Dublin South Central, added:
“There’s huge anger in working-class communities like Ballyfermot and Drimnagh. People are doing their best to keep a roof over their heads, pay bills, feed their kids and now they’re being told their home is going to be taxed even more. It’s not just unfair, it’s cruel. The ruling group parties will argue that this is an insignificant increase but it comes on top of rising grocery prices, energy bills and other costs. It is unjust, the LPT in principle is unjust, and the increases likely to be passed tonight will push working people harder.”
People Before Profit's proposed 15% reduction would offer relief to tens of thousands of homeowners across the city.
Cllr Reddy concluded:
“Local government is in dire need of increased funding. Years of cuts from central government are why Dublin City Council tenants struggle with damp, mould and poor conditions in their homes. Cuts are why we have dirty city streets, cracked footpaths and road surfaces. An additional €16m will not fix these issues but it will hurt ordinary people. We need much more radical action to strengthen our local authorities.
This starts with taxes on wealth, harsher taxes on vacant property and putting a levy on hotel stays, but it should also include a total reconfiguration of powers of local councils - to allow Dublin City Council and other authorities to do more and raise more money by more progressive means.”
The People Before Profit alternative budget for 2025 included the following proposals so that Local Property Tax would not need to be raised:
- A Non-Principal Private Residence Tax on second and subsequent homes:
€1,000 on a second home
€1,500 per property on 2–10 properties
€2,500 per property on portfolios of 11+
Estimated revenue: €544 million — almost equivalent to the entire LPT take nationally - A Vacant Property and Site Tax, increasing above inflation:
Estimated revenue: €480 million - A Tax on Unused Zoned Land, where land is zoned residential but left idle:
€25,000 per hectare per year
Estimated revenue: €178 million - A Wealth Tax on net assets over €4.7 million (excluding principal primary residence)
Estimated revenue: €5 billion