Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 3:

In page 6, between lines 16 and 17, to insert the following:"3. The Minister shall, within one month of the passing of this Act, prepare and lay before Dáil Éireann a report on options available for removing the USC liability for all workers earning less than €19,752 a year.".

We touched on this earlier. It is about Sinn Féin's proposal to remove those earning below €19,752, which we believe should be the new level of minimum wage, from the USC tax net. This measure would cost in the region of €78 million as opposed to the €335 million the Government's proposal in section 2 would cost. We believe it would remove, as I mentioned earlier, the unfairness in the USC, while acknowledging there has been significant movement during the years since it was first introduced at a level of €4,004. It is now at a level of €13,000. We believe further progress should be made and that the level should be increased to €19,752. I also point out to the Minister, in case he missed it when he read our alternative budget this year, that - as is the case every year - a wealth tax proposal was included. We discussed the need for a report earlier when we met in the Dáil Chamber.