The Government has approved the introduction of household charges that will take affect next year. The €100 charge was announced by Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government and is part of the EU/IMF Programme for Financial Support for Ireland.

It is said that €160m will be generated from the tax which will be applied to every household in order to provide for “vital services” such as fire and emergency services, public parks, waste services etc.

Although the Minister, Mr Phil Hogan has called the fee “modest” he says that he intends to introduce a system where people can pay in instalments.