534. Deputy Patrick Nulty asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if a person (details supplied) can pay their outstanding motor tax over a long period in view of the particular circumstances of the case. [8360/14]

Motor tax legislation provides that, when taking out a tax disc, a vehicle owner is liable for arrears in respect of each month from the date of last taxing or from the date of purchase of the vehicle. There is no provision whereby motorists can come to individual payment arrangements with a licensing authority. Any such change to the basis of payment for motor tax would be required to be underpinned by primary legislation and be made equally available to all motorists. It would also be administratively cumbersome and potentially have a negative impact on the flow of income to the Local Government Fund and consequently on allocations to local authorities from the Fund. I have no plans currently to introduce such a change.