Fianna Fáil has called on the Government to reduce the holding period on land sites to four years in a bid to tackle land hoarding by large investors.

Spokesperson on Housing, Planning and Local Government Barry Cowen TD also accused the Government of showing "little interest" in tackling land hoarding.

Deputy Cowen added that the decision taken by former Finance Minister Michael Noonan in 2012 to grant a Capital Gains Tax exemption to investors who brought prior to the end of December 2014, and held the property for seven years, has led to significant land hoarding.

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He said: "The original purpose of the exemption was to encourage large scale foreign investors into the property market and many bought empty sites at knock down rates between 2012 and 2014. However the scheme was short-sighted and poorly designed as it created an incentive for investors to retain sites for seven years, even if they did not intend on developing them.

"Most investors have an incentive to sit on these vacant sites while they appreciate in value until the end of the seven year period when they can claim their capital gains exemption. The earliest date that properties acquired in the relevant period can qualify for the exemption is 7th December 2018.

"NAMA Chief Executive, Brendan McDonagh, has confirmed the impact of this poorly designed tax exemption on encouraging land hoarding. While the agency has sold land that could be used to build 50,000 homes, so far only 3,000 are under construction on these lands.

"I am calling on the Government to reduce the holding period on these sites to four years, which will allow investors the opportunity to sell these sites now rather than in 2018, 2019 and 2020."

(CD)