Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 21:

In page 23, between lines 10 and 11, to insert the following: “(2) For the purpose of clarity such provisions will also apply to businesses with charitable status providing emergency medical services in the State but registered in the UK, which shall be required to re-register in the State following the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union.”.

This amendment concerns an issue that is close to my heart - the provision of air ambulance services in the countryside. As the Minister knows, the programme for Government contains a commitment to the establishment of a second air ambulance service in the southern part of the country. That happened earlier this year when a charity, Irish Community Rapid Response, established an aeromedical service based in County Cork. On average, the service flies 50 missions a month. This has taken pressure off the air ambulance service based at Custume Barracks in Athlone. Its objective is to ensure the air ambulance based at Custume Barracks can respond to far more emergencies in the midlands and the west.

To fund the operation of the service, Irish Community Rapid Response must raise €2 million per annum.

The service is provided by a UK-registered helicopter company. Post Brexit, that company will have to re-register in the Republic of Ireland in order to be licensed to operate here. A VAT exemption is currently in place in the United Kingdom. However, when the company registers here, it will no longer be able to avail of that exemption and communities across the country will have to fundraise for the 23% VAT on top of the €2 million it costs to operate the service. It is a challenge for Irish Community Rapid Response, ICRR, to raise €2 million a year. It should not be asked to raise another €500,000 on top of that just to pay a VAT bill. There is precedent on this issue. The Irish Coast Guard and the Royal National Lifeboat Institution, RNLI, are exempt from paying VAT. This charity and communities across the country are fundraising for a vital air ambulance service that is fulfilling a commitment set out in the programme for Government. I want an assurance that when this company re-registers here, it will not have to raise an extra €500,000 just to pay VAT.