Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

My last question relates to the concentration of corporation tax receipts. Mr. Coffey can wear his other hat for this answer. We are all familiar with some of the statistics. We know about the 37%. We have been comforted in recent years in the sense that every time we ask a parliamentary question, the concentration levels are coming down. It used to be 40% and now it is 37% for the top ten companies, although I found out last week through questioning Revenue officials that the top ten is really the top nine, because two of the top ten companies are in the same group. It was said that the concentration had just got more concentrated. That would have been a great line if it was mine, but it came from the Revenue officials. It is concerning that the level of concentration exists at 37% from nine groups. I presume if we scaled it back a little further to the top 11, 12 or 13 companies, we would see more companies that are in the top level groups.

The report references one of the benefits of Brexit as increased foreign direct investment. This could mean increased concentration and increased reliance in terms of the tax take. Obviously, we are not going to turn away foreign direct investment if companies want to come to Gaoth Dobhair, Cork or wherever and invest and employ several hundred people. What is the IFAC view on what we should do in such a scenario in terms of having a more sustainable fiscal outlook in the context of greater concentration of foreign direct investment and a greater reliance on the tax that comes from it?