Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, Solidarity) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 40:

In page 48, between lines 3 and 4, to insert the following: “Report on impact of financial transactions tax

28. Within 6 months of the passing of this Act, the Minister shall produce a report on the revenue deriving from a financial transactions tax of 0.1 per cent on shares and securities and 0.01 per cent on derivatives.”.

This amendment proposes the preparation of a report on establishing a financial transactions tax or a so-called Tobin tax of 0.1% on shares and securities and 0.01% on derivatives. Obviously, we are calling for a report because we cannot call for an amendment. The Minister likes to talk sometimes about the importance of a broad tax base and this is one way of broadening the base by way of taxing financial transactions. It is not solely or even primarily about raising revenue but about trying to curb speculative transactions which are of no social good whatsoever. There are proposals for an EU-wide financial transactions tax to which the Irish Government is opposed. Other European countries have already moved in the direction of a financial transactions tax.