Once upon a political time, the Budget details were sacrosanct, tightly sealed until the finance minister rose in the Dáil chambers on an autumn morning.  Now, it would be a shock to hear anything come out of the minister’s mouth which was not already leaked weeks in advance.   Yet, one surprise in then-minister Paschal Donohoe’s speech last year was a plan to replace the derelict site levy with a new system.  The current levy was brought in to cut down on the thousands of empty and degrading sites across the country and encourage their renovation or replacement with new homes…

Want to continue reading?

Get unlimited access to The Currency and The Wall Street Journal with an annual membership – and receive a free, signed copy of Vincent Browne’s new book, Charles Haughey: Glory, Greed and Guns, delivered straight to your door.

Subscribe

Cancel at any time.

Are you already a member? .