The minister made the announcement during a speech to the annual Ulster Members' network lunch of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), at Belfast Castle.
The proposal to implement a derelict land tax was something the Executive had agreed to explore as part of last year’s review of rating.
The minister explained to delegates that changes in the economic environment had led to his decision, pointing out that the aim of the proposal had been to encourage more development land onto the market to help address the shortage of affordable housing.
Mr Dodds said: “Clearly, the market conditions which led to the development of this proposal have reversed since the time of the rating review in 2007. The supply of development land has increased and prices have dropped dramatically, with increasing pressures on the development sector and in particular the viability of house building.
“It would not be right to proceed further with the proposal during the life of this current Assembly, a move which I hope will be welcomed by the development sector, which has enough to contend with at the moment, without the prospect of a new tax on land holdings”.
Notes to Editors:
- Media enquiries only to DFP Communications Office on 028 9052 7374 or 028 9052 7375. Out of office hours please contact the Duty Press Officer via pager number 076 9971 5440 and your call will be returned.
- ACCA is one of the six UK accountancy bodies, the other 5 being:
The Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA);
The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA);
The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland (ICAI);
The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW); and
The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Scotland (ICAS). - ACCA was founded in London in 1904 and is now a global accountancy body, with 122,000 members and 325,000 students in 170 countries across the world. Their goal is to become the leading global professional accountancy body by reputation, influence and size. In Ireland ACCA has over 18,000 members and students.
