Ireland: Council staff 'to call to houses to collect household tax'

[Lloyd Danforth]

http://www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews/ireland/council-staff-to-call-to-houses-to-collect-household-tax-544777.html

With just a week to go to the Government's registration deadline, around 80% of homeowners have yet to pay the €100 charge.

Staff from city and town councils are to call to households that are refusing to pay the €100.

The Irish Independent reports that Environment Minister Phil Hogan has told the councils to knock on doors to collect the money from Monday, April 2.

With just a week to go to the Government's registration deadline, around 80% of homeowners have yet to pay the €100 charge.

Only 328,000 of the 1.6 million households required to pay the charge by next Saturday have registered, the Department of the Environment said.

Meanwhile, campaigners from all over the country will gather in the National Stadium on Dublin's South Circular Road from 1pm today for an anti-household tax rally.

Spokesperson for the Campaign Against Household and Water Taxes, Ruth Coppinger said their cause is gaining momentum.

"We've had the revelations of corruption and bribery at the top of society between politics and business, which is deterring people from paying this tax," she said.

Read more: http://www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews/ireland/council-staff-to-call-to-houses-to-collect-household-tax-544777.html#ixzz1q3OZFruw

[Lloyd Danforth]

http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/ireland-faces-popular-revolt-property-tax-16045514#.T3jH0dn_Ttt


Debt-mired Ireland is facing a revolt over its new property tax.

The government said less than half of the country's 1.6 million households paid the charge by Saturday's deadline to avoid penalties. And about 5,000 marched in protest against the annual conference of Prime Minister Enda Kenny's Fine Gael party.