Kilkenny man John Bryan has called on the Government to abandon the green carbon tax on farm diesel, which comes into effect next weekend. The IFA believes that the introduction of the new tax will reduce farm incomes by two per cent.
The IFA has spoken to Government ministers and rural TDs in recent weeks about the harmful impact the carbon tax would have on agriculture and it is understood that the hike in tax will increase costs for the tillage sector and agricultural contractors, who are already struggling.
John Bryan pointed out that farmers’ incomes were at an all-time low and he suggested that carbon taxing farmers will indeed negatively affect any future recovery in the farming industry.
“The tax will cost the Government a lot more than the revenue generated,” he said, “with jobs lost and a delay in restoring competitiveness to the economy.”
Meanwhile, Kilkenny IFA chairman Joan Fitzpatrick has said that the introduction of the carbon tax on farm diesel from May 1 will badly hit the tillage sector in particular and all other sectors using contracting activities over the summer months, the time of peak demand for farm diesel. She said the tillage sector and contractors must be given the opportunity to recover before this tax is imposed.
Mrs Fitzpatrick pointed out, “the introduction of the carbon tax will increase the price of farm diesel by 8.75 per cent, which is an additional cost of over €11m to the agriculture sector. The value of the sector has fallen by over 60 per cent since 2007.”
She said: “To add to the difficulties of the sector, the Government is now imposing a non-productive carbon tax, the adoption of which has only recently been rejected by France, due to its negative effect on the competitiveness of the productive sectors. This additional cost will see jobs lost in primary agriculture, contracting and processing in 2010.”
