Monday, 3 October 2022 | 12.5°C Dublin
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Concrete products have already seen steep increases this year. Stock image
A levy will be introduced on concrete blocks and readymix in a bid to raise €80m a year, Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe announced in Budget 2023.
T he levy is to be applied from April 3 at a rate of 10%.
It comes following a Government decision in November 2021 to introduce a levy to contribute towards meeting the substantial cost of the Mica Redress Scheme.
The ICSA president Dermot Kelleher said he was stunned by the news that there will be a 10pc levy on readymix concrete as well as other concrete products including blocks.
“This will have huge implications for farmers. It will impact many farms that need a load of readymix for upgrades. It may also impact various concrete products and ICSA will be engaging with the detail of this.
"For example, many water troughs are now concrete products. Obviously, it will have huge implications for any farmer building a slatted tank, slurry or silage storage or grain storage facilities. We are calling on the Government to look at this again. This will overshadow the announcement of accelerated capital allowances for slurry storage (2-year write-off rather than 7 years).”
ICMSA President Pat McCormack also welcomed the accelerated capital allowances for slurry storage, describing it as a notable step forward and as making sense on financial and environmental grounds.
However, he too said the new concrete and concrete products levy would certainly dilute the effectiveness of the measure.
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