Fianna Fail claims the property tax will not deliver an improvement in services.

It was announced today that 20% of the local property tax is to be re-distributed to other areas from where it is paid. The government says while 80% of it will be retained locally to fund public services, the remaining amount will go elsewhere in the country.

This is to provide top-up funding to certain local authority areas that have lower property tax bases where the property tax intake is not enough to meet the cost of services.

The government has also decided that no local authority will receive less income from the property tax in 2015 than they received from the local government fund in 2014.

And local authorities who stand to receive more income in from the property tax than they received from the local government fund will be entitled "to use a certain portion of that additional funding for their own discretionary purposes as part of their normal budgetary process."

Local authority members have been given the power to adjust their property tax rates up or down by as much as 15% for 2015.

The government says anyone who wishes to do this must inform the Revenue Commissioners by the end of September.

But Barry Cowen of Fianna Fail says taxpayers have been hoodwinked.

Environment Minister Alan Kelly spoke to Newstalk Lunchtime earlier about the thinking behind the decision.