RIP Laura Buckley Noonan
Search
07 Sept 2025
Search
07 Sept 2025
Please allow ads as they help fund our trusted local news content.
Kindly add us to your ad blocker whitelist.
If you want further access to Ireland's best local journalism, consider contributing and/or subscribing to our free daily Newsletter .
Support our mission and join our community now.
To continue reading this article, you can subscribe for as little as €0.50 per week which will also give you access to all of our premium content and archived articles!
Alternatively, you can pay €0.50 per article, capped at €1 per day.
Thank you for supporting Ireland's best local journalism!
A consultation has found support for proposals to allow additional council tax charges for second homes in Scotland.
The Scottish Government consultation received 981 responses, with 55% in favour of the proposals.
If the plans are approved at Holyrood, councils would be able to charge up to double the full rate of council tax on homes that are not used as a main residence.
Due to the council tax freeze announced by Humza Yousaf, in 2024/25 this would be based on rates from the current year.
At the end of September 2022, there were some 24,287 second homes in Scotland.
Public Finance Minister Tom Arthur said: “Although second homes can sometimes benefit local communities, they can also restrict the availability of housing and increase costs for people who want to rent or buy.
“We want to prioritise homes for living in, and our proposals to allow local authorities to charge a council tax premium on second homes will enable councils to seek a fair contribution towards local services from second-home owners.
“We know that high inflation is putting significant strain on household finances, which is why we are fully funding a council tax freeze for 2024-25.
“This will cover any home that is used as someone’s primary residence and is distinct from the application of any discount or premium applied by a council.”
Subscribe or register today to discover more from DonegalLive.ie
Buy the e-paper of the Donegal Democrat, Donegal People's Press, Donegal Post and Inish Times here for instant access to Donegal's premier news titles.
Keep up with the latest news from Donegal with our daily newsletter featuring the most important stories of the day delivered to your inbox every evening at 5pm.
This publication supports the work of the Press Council of Ireland and Office of the Press Ombudsman, and our staff operate within the Code of Practice of the Press Council. You can obtain a copy of the Code, or contact the Council, at www.presscouncil.ie, Lo-call 1800 208 080 or email: info@presscouncil.ie.
