Latest news with #Budget2026
Agriland
5 days ago
- Business
- Agriland
Minister urged to retain tax relief for farmers
The Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers' Association (ICSA) is urging the Minister for Finance, Paschal Donohoe to retain key tax relief for farmers ahead of Budget 2026. ICSA Rural Development chair Edmond Phelan has said that the retention of key tax reliefs for farmers is absolutely vital, particularly in the context of generational renewal and the need to provide greater certainty for family farms. 'These reliefs – such as the Young Trained Farmer stamp duty exemption, Agricultural Relief from Capital Acquisitions Tax [CAT], and Farm Consolidation Relief – are not just technical tax measures,' Phelan said. 'They are essential supports that underpin efforts to improve farm viability, encourage land mobility, and, crucially, to support young people to enter and remain in farming. 'There should be no disincentives to farm transfers,' he said. The ICSA was responding to comments made by Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe, who confirmed in response to a parliamentary question, reported by Agriland, that several farm-related tax relief schemes are currently under review ahead of Budget 2026. According to Minister Donohoe, a number of tax reliefs are due to 'sunset' at the end of 2025. The first scheme under review is the Accelerated Capital Allowance (income tax) for slurry storage. The second scheme the minister mentioned was the Young Trained Farmer (stamp duty) Relief. The Farm Consolidation (stamp duty) Relief is also under review and the minister also mentioned Revised CAT Agricultural Relief. Phelan said the looming expiry or 'sunset' of these schemes at the end of 2025 must be addressed with clarity and urgency. 'ICSA is calling on the Minister for Finance to commit to the long-term retention of these reliefs in Budget 2026,' the ICSA chair continued. 'Farmers need certainty to plan for succession, make investment decisions, and meet environmental obligations. The absence of a firm commitment to extend these measures risks creating unnecessary hesitation at a time when we should be incentivising action. 'The other targeted tax reliefs mentioned by Minister Donohoe – Farm Restructuring (CGT) Relief and the Accelerated Capital Allowance for slurry storage – are equally vital for improving both environmental performance and economic sustainability on farms,' he added. The farm group has said that all of these measures align with national goals around climate action, biodiversity, and generational renewal. It added that removing or weakening them would send the wrong message at a time when the sector is being asked to do more than ever.
Agriland
5 days ago
- Business
- Agriland
ICMSA: Farmers ‘on board' with climate change plans
The Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers' Association (ICMSA) president, Denis Drennan has said that despite massive challenges, Irish farmers are engaged in the effort to address climate change. Speaking at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) Agriculture and Climate Change conference, Drennan said that the results and data were now 'showing the fruits' of farmers' efforts. Drennan believes that farmers are committed and 'on board' with plans to mitigate climate change. However, he stressed that farmers needed reassurance that those plans still rested on 'the three pillars of sustainability', including economic, environmental, and social. The ICMSA president said: 'There are challenges ahead that will have to be faced, and even leaving aside the very significant and unfair anomalies in the accountancy framework used for measuring emissions, the most obvious challenge is the ongoing failure of government to step up and support farmers. 'It's this failure of the government to support its own policies and recommendations that is hampering even more encouraging results and data. 'Irish agriculture is leading the way globally in meeting the climate challenge and the ICMSA believes that farmers can, and will, do more if properly supported,' Drennan added. Climate change According to the ICMSA president, the government has to stop 'coming up with reasons for not taking action' on climate change. Drennan believes that Budget 2026 should be used to signal a 'more proactive approach'. He also called on the government to 'work with farmers to make progress' on Ireland's emission targets. Drennan said: 'Work with farmers to make more progress ,or ultimately pay the fines that will be levied, because Ireland falls short on the emissions targets that could have been hit if we'd had the support. 'Budget 2026 is where we'll see if the government understands that choice and has made a decision that is logical on both the environmental and financial fronts,' he added.
Business Recorder
6 days ago
- Business
- Business Recorder
Better news
At its current pace, cement offtake this year is likely to end up roughly at the same level as last year. Domestic dispatches are estimated to have declined by around 6 percent, but total dispatches have been buoyed by a 24–25 percent rise in exports. Despite muted local demand, cement companies have remained largely profitable, thanks to strong domestic pricing and controlled coal costs. The upcoming budget, however, could bring even better news. After quietly dissolving former Prime Minister Imran Khan's flagship initiative—the Naya Pakistan Housing Development Authority (NAPHDA)—Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif now appears poised to introduce a housing finance subsidy, echoing Mera Pakistan Mera Ghar (MPMG) scheme in structure, but likely introduced with less fanfare. In its four years of operation, NAPHDA had planned 156,000 housing units, of which only about 58,000 were completed. Of these, 31,000 were financed through MPMG. Given the original target of 5 million homes, progress has been disappointing. It's worth noting, however, that many of the projects under NAPHDA were not initiated by the authority itself but were pre-existing schemes absorbed into its portfolio. The current administration does not appear keen on launching a massive, centrally managed housing initiative—which, considering NAPHDA's bureaucratic pitfalls and Pakistan's fiscal constraints is probably wise. Instead, the government is planning a modest, targeted mark-up subsidy for 200,000 homes. That's a small and manageable start. Banks already have mechanisms in place to assess mortgage applications, owing to their experience with MPMG. According to BR estimates—since the SBP did not disclose borrower figures—approximately 78,000 mortgages were issued between 2020 and 2022, tied to Rs100 billion in loan disbursements (read: 'Now you see it, now you don't'). With limited data, it's difficult to assess the full impact of the scheme. But if Sharif's plan delivers financing for 200,000 homes through the formal banking channel, it would be more than double of what the MPMG ever achieved. And double is better, right? One cannot possible say. The fact is, whether a subsidy scheme will be impactful and add valuable output to the housing market or not, is a question for another day or another political era.. We will have to wait for the Budget 2026 announcement to see the exact modalities of the subsidy—who the scheme will target, and how it will be executed. What's certain increase housing credit will spur demand for construction materials, and cement stands to gain the most which the industry will undoubtedly welcome.
Agriland
7 days ago
- Business
- Agriland
Minister reveals agri schemes under ‘review' before Budget 2026
The Minister for Finance, Paschal Donohoe has outlined a number of schemes for farmers that the Department of Finance is reviewing in advance of Budget 2026. The minister was responding to a parliamentary question from Fianna Fáil TD, Peter 'Chap' Cleere. According to Minister Donohoe, a number of tax reliefs are due to 'sunset' at the end of 2025. The first scheme under review is the Accelerated Capital Allowance (income tax) for slurry storage. The scheme was announced in 2023 to allow for the accelerated capital allowance for slurry storage, and for the construction of slurry storage facilities in farms. 'The scheme allows for the capital expenditure on slurry storage buildings and associated equipment to be written off at a rate of 50% per annum over a period of two years, as opposed to the standard period of seven years in the case of farm buildings, and eight years in the case of plant and machinery,' Minister Donohoe explained. The scheme has been in place for three years for expenditure occurred from January 1, 2023 to December 21, 2025. Schemes The second scheme the minister mentioned was the Young Trained Farmer (stamp duty) Relief. It provides a full exemption on stamp duty, which is normally charged at 7.5% on the transfer of farmland, subject to certain conditions being met. The relief is available where farm holdings are consolidated by way of linked sales, purchases of land, and where land is transferred as a gift or by way of exchange. According to the minister, stamp duty at a reduced rate of 1% is applied to the excess of the value of the land acquired over the value of the land disposed of, where the acquisition and disposal take place within a 24-month period of each other. The scheme has been renewed for three-year periods on several occasions and is next due to 'sunset' on December 31, 2025. The Farm Consolidation (stamp duty) Relief is also under review. The purpose of the relief is to encourage the consolidation of farm holdings, to reduce farm fragmentation, and improve the operation and viability of farms. Minister Donohoe said: 'The relief is available where farm holdings are consolidated by way of linked sales and purchases of land and where land is transferred as a gift or by way of exchange. As with the Young Trained Farmer Relief, stamp duty at a reduced rate of 1% is applied. Minister Donohoe also highlighted the situation with the Farm Restructuring (CGT) Relief. He said: 'The purpose of farm restructuring relief is to encourage the consolidation of farm holdings, to reduce farm fragmentation and so improve the operation and viability of farms. 'The relief applies to a sale, purchase or exchange of agricultural land, where Teagasc has certified that a sale and purchase or an exchange of agricultural land was made for farm restructuring purposes,' Minister Donohoe added. The scheme has been renewed for three-year periods on several occasions and is next due to 'sunset' on December 31, 2025. Finally, the minister mentioned the Revised CAT Agricultural Relief. In this scheme, tax legislation provides relief from Capital Acquisitions Tax (CAT) for gifts and inheritances of agricultural property, where conditions are met. The minister explained that where the relief applies, it operates by reducing for, CAT purposes, the market value of qualifying assets by 90%. Minister Donohoe said: 'To qualify for the relief, a few conditions must be met by the beneficiary. One condition is the active farmer test, which requires the beneficiary to farm the agricultural property or lease it to an individual who farms the agricultural property for at least six years following the gift or inheritance. ' (The) Finance Act 2024 extended the active farmer test to the disponer by way of a commencement order. 'Department officials are in the process of consulting with stakeholders with a view to ensuring there are no unintended consequences in commencing this section,' the minister added.
Otago Daily Times
25-05-2025
- Business
- Otago Daily Times
Greens claim $700m 'uncosted hole' in Budget
By Susan Edmunds of RNZ The government could face an unbudgeted hole of hundreds of millions of dollars in increased KiwiSaver contributions for public sector workers, the Green Party says. As part of the Budget last week, the government announced that the default KiwiSaver contribution for employees and employers would lift to 4 percent, in stages. But the Green Party said the government had not accounted for that increase for its own employees in its books, and over the Budget forecast period it could add up to $714 million in costs. Co-leader Chloe Swarbrick said last time the government increased the compulsory employer contribution, it set up a fund to help cover its costs. The increased cost to government as an employer was highlighted in the Budget Economic and Fiscal Update and in the KiwiSaver reforms regulatory impact statement. "What we've found is what we believe to be a hole in the government Budget, an uncosted hole of anywhere from $633m to $714m over the forecast period," Swarbrick said. "The Crown is obviously an employer of thousands and thousands of people with billions and billions of dollars in wage bills. If we're to project from the base line of around 72 percent of the population... at the default rate which is increasing, the Crown will have an increased liability to meet those employer contributions." She said the government either did not spend enough time working it out, or was "intentionally hiding or obscuring what I'm sure the minister will say are going to have to be new cuts that agencies and ministries will be forcing departments to make to account for the increased contributions". Finance Minister Nicola Willis's office said the potential cost had been noted. "Crown agencies as employers will assess the potential implications for agency budgets. If any additional funding is required, it would count against the Budget 2026 operating allowance." But Swarbrick said it was not being sufficiently upfront. She said it seemed the government did not want to be seen to be being "mean" by just halving the member tax credit, to $260 a year, and so had to increase contributions at the same time. It should have happened as part of more consultation and a full review of retirement settings, she said. "This will be an additional cost as soon as the changes come into effect." Employers who offer total remuneration packages to employees will dodge some of the increase but Swarbrick said it was clear that the government would not be able to shift people on to that arrangement to avoid the increase in a way that reduced their take-home pay. Craig Renney, policy director at the NZ Council of Trade Unions and a member of the Labour Party Policy Council, said it was an issue for the government as an employer. "It would be good to know what calculations they have made themselves as to their additional remuneration costs. Is the Crown going to force workers to eat the increase themselves? It would set a very bad example for the rest of the market." He said good employers should see the increase as an opportunity to improve employees' retirement outcomes. "The risk is that for some employers they might view the 'total remuneration' of their employees as a single package. That would mean they would expect any increase in KiwiSaver to come from the same money. That would mean lower real pay increases for employees and less cash in hand. "Given that we have very weak demand in the economy, there are probably limited opportunities for employees to get a different job - especially with unemployment forecast to keep rising. Ultimately, that would mean that the government has set up a system where employees end up paying for increased employers contributions to their own KiwiSaver. "There are some industries where there might be a simple pass-on to the consumer for these costs, but again, in a subdued market these are probably fewer than you might expect. These are probably also higher income earners, so the likelihood is that lower income earners will be more likely to face that 'total remuneration' issue. That will simply compound existing income adequacy problems in New Zealand." Employees will be able to opt to return their contribution to 3 percent, matched by an employer's 3 percent. Renney said there was a risk some people could face pressure to do so. "Again, it is likely to low paid/lower market power employee who face this challenge. Secondly, if we make it easier to become a contractor - where this is not an issue - this move will encourage employers to pretend that their employees are contractors. The current proposed changes by government in that regard might drive more of that behaviour, putting workers at a significant disadvantage."
