Tesla fury as eco-friendly benefit deal put in reverse
With Sean O’rourke FINANCE Minister Paschal Donohoe has been accused of “talking crap” over his Budget plans to build thousands of new homes next year.
The blunt charge came from an angry construction worker who said builders aren’t paid enough to work.
Cormac Vaughan hit out at Mr Donohoe during RTE’S post-budget phone-in with the minister yesterday.
He said the houses couldn’t be built because construction crews are poorly paid and claimed many of his co-workers suffer under zero-hour contracts.
Mr Vaughan added: “Minister, there’s no point you coming out and telling us what you’re going to do, build 6,500 social and affordable houses next year when you can’t deliver it.
“Because the workers won’t come out and build them for you, they’re sitting on their hands last night listening to you on Prime Time and they know damn well you’re talking crap. That’s the problem Minister, you need to lead by example, and the Oireachtas as well, otherwise you won’t get anything built in this country.”
He warned Mr Donohoe he won’t get all the construction workers he needs back into the industry without improving their salaries.
Mr Vaughan told the Sean O’rourke Show: “Minister, you’re not going to deliver. You need another 140,000 construction personnel to come here on top of the numbers that are here now. How are you going to get another 140,000 people to come into the industry when they can’t make a living out of it?”
Meanwhile, the housing debate took centre stage in the Dail again yesterday.
Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou Mcdonald used her spot in Leaders’ Questions to hit out at Mr Donohoe.
She said: “Yesterday, we were told for the third year in a row that the Budget is a housing budget.
“It would more properly be described as a budget for landlords.
“In spite of the scale of the current crisis for renters, with rents going up and up with no end in sight, the Government chose to leave renters out in the cold.
“The Budget contains no measures on rent control, tax relief for renters or security of tenure.
“In our alternative budget, Sinn Fein proposed that a three-year rent freeze for all existing and new tenancies be introduced with immediate effect and demonstrated how that could be achieved.” FIRMS who bought electric Tesla cars were in uproar last night after the Finance Minister capped the benefitin-kind price.
Despite Paschal Donohoe extending the 0% rate for environmentally-friendly motors for a period of three years in the Budget, he put a limit of €50,000 on the original market value of a vehicle that qualifies for this tax rate.
The chairman of the Tesla Owners of Ireland group said businesses purchased the car that starts at €100,000 for the BIK incentive.
John Casey added firms are likely to now sell their Tesla and return to petrol or diesel executive cars as they will end up paying huge bills.
BACKWARDS
He also said it’s a step backwards for eco-friendly cars in the country.
Mr Casey added: “The decision Minister Donohoe has taken is only going to hit Tesla sales are they are the only real electric car in that price bracket.
“A huge amount of businesses purchased them because of the 0% BIK incentive and as Tesla cars allow them to do long journeys that other electric cars wouldn’t.
“There are no other cars above €50,000 in that range. At the end of the day businesses will end up going back to buying petrol and diesel cars which are far from eco-friendly.
“It’s a huge step backwards and Tesla business owners are in uproar over it and people in the group are very concerned.
“They are writing to Minister Donohoe and their local representatives in a bid for this not to be put into legislation.”
He added: “Seventy to 80% of people buying these Tesla cars are business owners using this BIK incentive.”