Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I do not agree with the proposal contained in section 64. Inheritance is one of the major ways in which inequality arises in our State. We have an inheritance threshold which is set at €320,000 for group A. The Minister proposes to increase that to €335,000. Indeed, Fine Gael and the Taoiseach have said with Fianna Fáil that they want that threshold to increase to €500,000. All international research says that inheritance is one of the things that lead to inequality. The average house price and the person inheriting the family home are what is always thrown up in this matter. The average house price in the State is €257,000. While there are house prices in Dublin and the commuter belt that are above that, this is not simply about bricks and mortar. It may be cash that is handed to someone free from tax below that level. I disagree with the proposal. It is interesting that the Parliamentary Budget Office said increasing the threshold offsets the benefits while narrowing the tax base. It argues that it is efficient, progressive and equitable, but that this now offsets those benefits and narrows the tax base. This is at a time when the Government tells us we need to increase and broaden the tax base. I am opposed to the proposal in section 64 and definitely opposed to the direction in which this policy is going.