Deirdre Clune (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I agree with the points made by Mr. Fielding. I refer to the high level of operation of the black economy during the 1980s. Taxes were lowered during the 1990s and more businesses operated legitimately. There has been a resurgence of the black economy as taxes have increased. However, times have changed. People now will not pay for services in the black economy; they will write a cheque or offer a card and demand an invoice rather than pay in cash. I have noted that this is happening in the trades and services sectors. There has been a cultural change. Revenue is doing much good work in this area by following up on advertisements in newspapers and the mobile phone numbers of those offering services. For the most part, the days of people paying for services with cash are long gone. However, there is a need for a further awareness campaign because the public needs to be made aware of the fact that the level of taxes could be reduced if everyone played ball on this issue.