A local Government TD and Junior Minister is hopeful that a new zoned land tax will encourage more house building in the wider Shannonside region.
The coalition has been sharply criticized since the measure was announced in the Budget on Tuesday, with the construction industry claiming that the new tax, which will come into effect in three years' time, is not the solution to the housing crisis.
Longford Westmeath TD Robert Troy says the era of developers holding onto land for years after its purchase, or gaining planning permission and not doing anything with it, needs to be brought to an end, and the tax will encourage more regional development.
The Minister for Trade Promotion, Digital and Company regulation, told the Bottom line that it would not have been possible to introduce the tax straight away:
