John Lahart (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I do not know the answer to the following question, which relates to the Minister's function with the Revenue Commissioners. We envisage there will be another overrun in the anticipated corporation tax take, that is, that it will exceed expectations. If that happens, how does the Minister intend to use any excess over what was anticipated?

The Committee on Budgetary Oversight has received many warnings in the past two or three years about the over-reliance on a small number of significant contributors to the large corporation tax figures. Does the Minister discuss such matters with the Revenue Commissioners? They do not reveal the details to the public but they know who pays tax and who the big payers are. Does the Minister know who the big payers are? I presume the answer is "No" because it is a confidential matter. Is there any mechanism for the Revenue Commissioners to warn the Government if they notice a significant decline in the corporation tax paid by a principal contributor over, say, the past five years? Are there any warning lights? IFAC is not able to give us the information.