THE NEW €100 household charge which came into effect on January 1st had been paid in respect of some 4,844 homes by close of business yesterday.
Direct debits had also been set up to make the payment in respect of a further 1,249 homes, the Department of the Environment confirmed.
Homeowners can register their details on www.householdcharge.ie and pay the charge by debit or credit card. Payment can also be made by cheque or postal order at local authority offices.
Chairwoman of the Household Charge Project Board Jackie Maguire said the deadline for payment was March 31st, after which late penalties and fines would arise. She said systems would be put in place, such as records held by the ESB for example, to track down people who fail to pay.
People living in local authority houses, those living in ghost estates or who are in receipt of mortgage interest supplement are among those who are exempt from the charge.
However Mick Murphy of the Campaign Against Household Water Taxes called on people not to pay the charge saying if enough people did not register “the Government will have to go back and rethink this”.
“Government policy is to broaden the tax base. What they really mean is broadening it onto the shoulders of ordinary working people. They should be looking at wealth taxes, profit taxes and taxes on higher income earners.”
Mr Murphy said he was confident more than 50 per cent of households would refuse to pay the charge. “We will be holding public meetings in every parish, starting with the urban centres and then moving into towns and villages.
“We will fight any case where an individual is brought to court over non-payment of this charge,” he said.
The campaign is holding an open meeting on Saturday, January 14th, at the Teachers’ Club on Parnell Square in Dublin. Its purpose is to bring activists together to discuss how best to step up the national non-payment campaign.
Socialist MEP Paul Murphy has lodged a complaint with the Data Commissioner about the www.householdcharge.ie website.
“This site is in breach of the 2011 regulations on privacy and electronic communications which implements EU directives on privacy,” he said.
“Its privacy statement declares that the site uses ‘session cookies’ which are erased after use, whereas in fact it uses so-called ‘persistent cookies’ that remain on people’s computers after they visit the website.”
The Office of the Data Protection Commissioner confirmed last night it had received a complaint from Mr Murphy.
At least 15 Opposition TDs who are campaigning against the new charge say they are prepared to go to jail for non-payment of the charge, for which fines of up to €2,500 can be imposed.
Last month, People Before Profit TD Joan Collins said the charge, likely to be replaced in little more than a year by a property tax, would have a “devastating impact” on families who were barely managing at present.
However Minister for the Environment Phil Hogan has warned the TDs that their threat to boycott the charge would bring the Oireachtas “down a very dangerous road for our democracy”.
“I think those TDs should pull back from this irresponsible activity where they are advocating, as lawmakers, that Irish people break the law. It is a very dangerous road for our democracy,” he said.
TAXING TIMES CHARGE Q&A
How much is the charge?€ 100
Who has to pay?Owners of residential properties. It also applies to second properties in addition to the € 200 non-principal private residence charge.
Where can I pay?You can register your details and pay by debit or credit card on www.householdcharge.ie Payment can also be made by cheque or postal order at local authority offices.
Can I pay by instalments?Yes. The household charge can be paid in four instalments of €25 by direct debit. The option to pay by direct debit will only be available until March 1st.
Who is exempt from the charge?Householders living in designated ghost estates and those receiving mortgage interest supplement. People living in local authority houses including those participating in shared ownership schemes; properties where the householder has had to leave their house due to long-term mental or physical infirmity to enter a nursing home, for example.
Further information is available from www.householdcharge.ie