Council Insists New Incentives Will Offset Rates Increase

Clare County Council insists that a new incentives will offset the impact of rates increases in Ennis and Kilrush.

The local authority has been defending the measure contained in its budget plan for 2016 as businesses angered by the rates hike have organised a demonstration at the council's December meeting.

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Clare County Council insists that plans to increase rates will benefit the entire county in the long run.

Under law the council is required to harmonise rates following the abolition of town council which means increasing rates in Ennis and Kilrush or bringing down the cost in the rest of the county.

But it says that lower ing rates would result in massive losses in revenue, which would impact on services provided across the county.

The local autority's Head of Finance says that if rates were brought down to levels currently paid in Ennis, it would result in losses of 3.6 million euro, while at Kilrush rates, 5 million would lost.

Niall Barrett says a new incentive scheme will minimise the impact of the rates hike and he insists that if rates are paid on time, the increase will be relatively small for most businesses.

But Ennis Chamber says that almost half of businesses in the county town are still in arrears and this measure will be the final nail in the coffin for many of them.

Along with Ennis Development Forum, the Chamber have called for a day of action at the council's meeting on December 14th and is encouraging colleagues in Kilrush to join them as businesses in both areas face a rates increase next year.

Rita Mc Inerny says businesses in both areas have paid their fair share towards consecutive budgets despite increased charges across the board.

Meanwhile, an online protest calling for a reversal of the decision has now gathered 1,331 signatures, over three hundred more than its original target.