Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said that the Government will look to modify the Residential Zoned Land Tax (RZLT) to exclude farmland where the landowner sought for the land to be de-zoned, but the planning authority refused the de-zoning application.

In the Dáil on Tuesday 9 May Taoiseach Leo Varadkar explained that the tax was only introduced to prevent landowners from hoarding land during the current housing crisis. The Taoiseach admitted that the land tax has now impacted around 200 farmers.

De-zoning

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“They are farmers who have sought de-zoning, which has been refused in some cases by An Bord Pleanála,” he said in response to a question from Limerick TD Willie O'Dea.

He said he spoke to the Minister for Housing, Minster for Finance and the Minister for Public Expenditure on the issue and accepted “that anomalies have arisen in cases where somebody has sought a de-zoning”.

“We do want to fix it. It may require a change in primary legislation to do so. We should have an answer in the next couple of weeks,” he said.

IFA

IFA has welcomed the response from the Taoiseach on the matter.

“It is encouraging to see that the Government is at last realising the devastating affect this penal tax would have had on farm families throughout the country,” said IFA farm business chair Rose Mary McDonagh.