Pearse Doherty (Donegal South West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The witnesses have heaped praise on the Department officials. They are great lobbyists in terms of their praising the right people at the right time. I agree that the Department deserves praise because its forecasting, which has increased dramatically, has been more or less on target this year.

We can all concur with what has been said about the Revenue online service. As an employer, I think it is a fantastic system to interact with.

Given that the Dáil is currently considering the Finance (No. 2) Bill 2013 - the Committee Stage debate begins next Wednesday - I would like to hear more about the pay and file issues that are of concern at the moment. Issues like the interest and penalties imposed in cases of overpayment and underpayment are about to be taken off the table for at least 12 months. I invite the institute to send us some information in that regard. How would it make the system more beneficial so that it better serves business and helps the domestic economy?

I would like to return to the question of what will happen if my view on the bringing forward of the pay and file date is wrong, and the Minister digs his heels in and brings the date forward to June or September. The statement from the Department makes it clear, unfortunately, that "the Minister's intention to bring annual Pay & File dates forward remains". It does not clarify what month the date will be brought forward to, but clearly it will be some time before October. If the Department cannot be moved in that respect, what will the institute say to try to limit the impact of this change on the firms to which it provides services?