Tánaiste Simon Harris has said there are no plans to remove stamp duty for first time property buyers in next month's Budget, despite Fianna Fáil's calls for the move earlier this week.
Speaking on Wednesday morning, the Minister for Finance said that the focus of the €1.5 billion tax package planned for the October 6th budget would be on income tax and that there was nothing in the agreed Programme for Government on stamp duty.
His comments came just 48 hours after Taoiseach Micheál Martin said he was favourably disposed towards the abolition of stamp duty for first-time buyers at Fianna Fáil's annual pre-Dáil think-in on Monday. Mr Martin’s colleague and Minister for Housing James Browne also said he is open to the move with the party’s belief being that it would alleviate financial pressures on first time buyers and encourage homebuilding.
While both Government members stopped short of saying such a change should be introduced in next month’s Budget, Fianna Fáil TD Seamus McGrath went further, saying he is "keeping the pressure up" to ensure the measure is delivered next month.
However, Fine Gael leader Harris has strongly downplayed the idea that it could be contained in Budget 2027.. Speaking before his arrival to Cabinet on Wednesday, he said everything he planned for the budget would be guided by the Programme for Government.
“That’s very clear that when the economy allows it, the priority in terms of taxation will be on bands and credits,” he said. Harris argued there were too many people paying the higher rate of tax on average incomes, adding that housing would be a priority in the budget but that tax measures were taken last year on housing and property – and that the Coalition had indicated then that it would not revisit the issue in order to provide stability.
“There are no proposals in relation to the programme for government around stamp duty and therefore at this moment in time I’m not proposing bringing forward such measures,” he said.
“There’s a finite amount we have in the tax package, we’ve been clear that the priority this year will be personal income tax, but there will be many, many ways in which we are really looking to stimulate housing supply in the budget.”
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