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The Irish Farmers Association (IFA) has called for a deferral on the agricultural tyre levy until outstanding issues are addressed.
The IFA urged the government to retain the current derogation until market imbalance issues are addressed and a practical disposal system for existing waste tyres on farms is put in place.
The association held a meeting with Minister of State Alan Dillon where they discussed key concerns around the proposed levy and also pointed out that many tyres are used for other purposes on farms such as covering silage pits, thus extending their life cycle significantly.
Black market
IFA president Francie Gorman said that the levy will create a “new tyre-based black economy” and result in significant revenue loss to the Irish exchequer.
“It is much too early to consider introducing a levy on agricultural tyres at this stage. Firstly, it will likely lead to a significant increase in the purchase of tyres from Northern Ireland, where no levy is in place, leading to a major loss of VAT revenue for the exchequer,” he said.
“Secondly, farmers have not been offered any way of disposing of existing waste tyres on farms similar to the collection points provided for waste plastic.
“Until a credible agreement is in place for both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, the tyre levy cannot go ahead.”
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