The group representing the Irish food and drink industry, Food Drink Ireland (FDI) has welcomed the country's Budget 2020 announcement, however others have warned that an increase in commercial stamp duty could hamper commercial activity.
Commenting on the announcement, FDI said that the Brexit support measures in the Budget were welcome, and if rolled out efficiently and effectively, could underpin the resilience of the agri-food sector and assist with product and market diversification.
The Irish government has pledged a €1.2 billion support package for firms affected by a no-deal Brexit, of which around half will be allocated to support the agriculture, enterprise and tourism sectors.
Trading Costs
“Food and drink exports to the UK will attract tariffs in the event of a no-deal Brexit and will also face additional trading costs from non-tariff barriers," commented Paul Kelly, FDI director.
"Irish food and drink exporters, operating on narrow margins and already struggling with a 20% depreciation in sterling, are in no position to absorb these tariff and trade costs. The new temporary tariff schedule published this morning by the UK Government continues to be very problematic for some foods and unless we see a significant degree of cost recovery in the marketplace, exports to the UK will be badly affected. This will require a multi-annual framework for Brexit mitigation.”
Commercial Stamp Duty
Elsewhere, however, Deloitte has warned that a separate measure announced in the country's Budget to raise commercial stamp duty from 6% to 7.5% could slow down commercial activity and foreign direct investment post-Brexit.
“From a residential perspective, the market continues to struggle to deliver supply and it looks like no government intervention will happen through the tax system to assist that recovery," commented Padraic Whelan, tax partner, Deloitte.
“That said, the additional spend on social housing is welcome and hopefully can be delivered as expected within the timeframes anticipated. In addition, the extension of the help-to-buy scheme was widely expected, and it may well be extended again in future.”
© 2019 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
