Chapter 12

Mid-Shannon Corridor Tourism Infrastructure Investment Scheme

372AW Interpretation, applications for approval and certification.

(1) In this Chapter—

“accommodation building”, in relation to a project, means a building or structure or part of a building or structure which consists of accommodation facilities or which is to be used or is suitable for use for the provision of such facilities;

“market value”, in relation to a building or structure, means the price which the unencumbered fee simple of the building or structure would fetch if sold in the open market in such manner and subject to such conditions as might reasonably be calculated to obtain for the vendor the best price for the building or structure, less the part of that price which would be attributable to the acquisition of, or of rights in or over, the land on which the building or structure is constructed;

“mid-Shannon corridor” means the corridor of land comprising all qualifying mid-Shannon areas;

“mid-Shannon Tourism Infrastructure Board” means a board consisting of not more than 5 persons selected for the purposes of this Chapter by the Minister in consultation with the Minister for Finance;

“Minister” means the Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism;

“project” means the construction or refurbishment of buildings and structures comprising—

(a) a holiday camp of the type referred to in section 372AX(1)(b), or

(b) one or more qualifying tourism infrastructure facilities,

the site or sites of which is or are wholly within a qualifying mid-Shannon area;

“property developer” means a person carrying on a trade which consists wholly or mainly of the construction or refurbishment of buildings or structures with a view to their sale;

“qualifying mid-Shannon area” means any area described in Schedule 8B;

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“qualifying period” means a period of 3 years commencing on the date on which this Chapter comes into effect;

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“qualifying period” means the period commencing on 1 June 2008 and ending on ^[4]>31 May 2013^<[4][4]>31 May 2015^<[4];

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“qualifying tourism infrastructure facilities” means such class or classes of facilities, comprising of buildings and structures only, as may be approved for the purposes of this Chapter by the Minister, in consultation with the Minister for Finance, and published in the relevant guidelines;

“refurbishment”, in relation to a building or structure, means any work of construction, reconstruction, repair or renewal, including the provision or improvement of water, sewerage or heating facilities, carried out in the course of—

(a) the repair or restoration, or

(b) maintenance in the nature of repair or restoration,

of the building or structure;

“relevant guidelines” mean guidelines issued in accordance with subsection (3) of this section or any guidelines issued in accordance with that subsection which amend or replace those guidelines.

(2) (a) Notwithstanding sections 372AX and 372AY, but subject to the subsequent provisions of this section and to section 372AZ, no relief from income tax or corporation tax, as the case may be, may be granted by virtue of this Chapter in respect of capital expenditure incurred in the qualifying period on the construction or refurbishment of a building or structure unless the mid-Shannon Tourism Infrastructure Board has—

(i) prior to such expenditure being incurred, but subject to paragraph (b), granted approval in principle in relation to the construction or refurbishment of the building or structure, and

(ii) after the expenditure is incurred, certified in writing that the construction or refurbishment which was carried out is in accordance with the criteria specified in the relevant guidelines, having regard to any relevant conditions and requirements imposed by the Board in the approval granted under subparagraph (i).

(b) Approval in principle shall not be granted in accordance with paragraph (a)(i) unless an application for such approval, in which the information and details as may be required in accordance with subsection (3)(h) are included, is received by the mid-Shannon Tourism Infrastructure Board within a period of ^[3]>one year^<[3][5]>[3]>2 years^<[3]<[5][5]>4 years^<[5] commencing on the date on which this Chapter comes into effect.

(3) Subject to subsection (4), for the purposes of approval and certification in accordance with subsection (2) and, as the case may be, certification in accordance with section 372AX(1)(d) or 372AY(1)(g) the Minister shall, in consultation with the Minister for Finance, issue guidelines to which the mid-Shannon Tourism Infrastructure Board shall have regard in deciding whether to grant approval in principle or to issue certification in relation to any building or structure and which guidelines may include criteria in relation to all or any one or more of the following:

(a) the nature and extent of the contribution which the project, in which the building or structure is comprised, makes to tourism development in the mid-Shannon corridor or the qualifying mid-Shannon area;

(b) coherence with national tourism strategy;

(c) environmental sensitivity, having particular regard to any area which is—

(i) a European site within the meaning of the European Communities (Natural Habitats) Regulations 1997 (S.I. No. 94 of 1997), or

(ii) a natural heritage area, a nature reserve or a refuge for fauna for the purposes of the Wildlife Acts 1976 and 2000;

(d) the amenities and facilities required to be provided in each type of project;

(e) the nature of and maximum extent to which accommodation buildings (if any) are allowable in each type of project;

(f) specific standards of design and construction in relation to buildings and structures which may qualify for relief under this Chapter;

(g) relevant planning matters, including the need for consistency with the requirements of a development plan or a local area plan within the meaning of those terms in the Planning and Development Act 2000;

(h) the details and information required to be provided in an application for approval or certification in accordance with section 372AW(2) and, as the case may be, an application for certification in accordance with section 372AX(1)(d) or 372AY(1)(g); and

(i) matters relating to the provision of information in accordance with sections 372AX(1)(c) and 372AY(1)(f),

together with such other matters as the Minister, in consultation with the Minister for Finance, may consider are required to be included.

(4) (a) Subject to paragraphs (b) and (c), approval and certification in accordance with subsection (2) shall not be granted or issued by the mid-Shannon Tourism Infrastructure Board in relation to capital expenditure incurred in the qualifying period on the construction or refurbishment of one or more than one accommodation building comprised in a project to the extent that such expenditure exceeds (or, where an application for approval is involved, is projected to exceed) an amount (referred to in this subsection as the “limit amount”) which is equal to the lesser of—

(i) 50 per cent, or such lower percentage as may be specified (in accordance with subsection (3)(e)) in the relevant guidelines for the type of project involved, of the total amount of the capital expenditure incurred in the qualifying period on the construction or refurbishment of all the buildings or structures comprised in the project, and

(ii) the amount of the capital expenditure incurred in the qualifying period on the construction or refurbishment of buildings and structures comprised in the project which are other than accommodation buildings.

(b) In any case where—

(i) there is more than one accommodation building comprised in a project, and

(ii) the aggregate of the amounts of capital expenditure incurred in the qualifying period on the construction or refurbishment of each accommodation building exceeds the limit amount,

then that aggregate shall, for the purposes of an application for approval or for certification in accordance with subsection (2), be reduced to an amount equivalent to the limit amount and that equivalent amount shall be apportioned on a just and reasonable basis between all the accommodation buildings comprised in the project.

(c) Subject to the criteria in the relevant guidelines being satisfied, the mid-Shannon Tourism Infrastructure Board may grant approval or issue certification in accordance with subsection (2) in relation to an accommodation building—

(i) where there is one accommodation building comprised in a project, only in relation to the amount of the capital expenditure incurred on the construction or refurbishment of the building in the qualifying period as does not exceed the limit amount, and

(ii) where paragraph (b) applies, provided that it is satisfied with the basis on which the apportionment has been made, only in relation to that part of the equivalent amount (as referred to in paragraph (b)) which is attributable to the building following the apportionment made in accordance with that paragraph.