The Irish Congress of Trade Unions has called for an independent regulator with statutory powers to investigate unfair pricing. ICTU's construction industry officer, Mr Fergus Whelan, said a regulator should have the powers to prevent powerful interest groups distorting market trends.
Mr Whelan claimed rezoning agricultural land in the greater Dublin area could bring windfall profits of 4,900 per cent, "almost a 50-fold increase". Despite this, capital gains tax had been reduced from 60 per cent in the 1960s to 20 per cent today. "This is very nice bonus for the superrich elite," he said.
Mr Whelan, due to speak at the "Zoning in on the Housing Crises" conference in the Dublin Institute of Technology today, said the Republic had faced a series of housing crises in recent years. Each crisis produced winners and losers, with builders, developers, auctioneers and lending agencies among the winners.
While he accepted there were no quick solutions, Mr Whelan said initiatives should include a radical reorganisation of the land market. This would include measures to penalise those trying to delay land being developed or houses being brought on to the markets.
New capital gains taxes, compulsory purchase of developed land and extra staff in local authorities are among the measures sought by ICTU.