Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I take the Deputy's point about apprenticeships but we might debate that another day.

To respond to the question about what would happen if there was another over-delivery in corporation tax receipts later in the year, we have put such focus on our health expenditure this year in order that we can manage it differently from what happened last year, which, as I have stated to the committee numerous times, I do not want to see repeated. The total level of Supplementary Estimates last year, which materialised between September and November, was not acceptable and I do not intend that to be repeated this year. I am working to ensure that as much as possible of the additional corporation tax we collect will feed into our national finance position, as opposed to it dealing with the cost of Supplementary Estimates.

On the question about the Revenue Commissioners and how they engage with me, they share information with me regarding the concentration of revenue tax collection within various sectors, by decile. That information is publicly available and they share much of it with the Oireachtas. I believe that the Deputy has used it, as have other Deputies. They do not provide much beyond that to me in private, nor would I ask them to. We have a large cases division, which manages tax collection from the largest employers. The information is sometimes shared with me in different aggregates from what might be provided publicly, with a little more detail but not enough for me to know who pays what. That is not made available to me and I would not request it.

This is why I believe that the work Deputy Cowen mentioned is important and why I want it to be done by the Department of Finance rather than by a third party. IFAC finds it difficult to answer the question. I have a number of views on what I expect to happen but the answer will depend on what happens sector by sector. My Department, therefore, should do that work and should have a different level of engagement with the Revenue Commissioners to be able to give the House a better answer on the medium-term sustainability of corporation tax collection.