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

I thank the Deputy. I am participating in an event with Commissioner Vestager in the morning. I have a lot of respect and recognition for the work she does. All of the issues in regard to Apple have been well aired elsewhere for quite a while. We just have to look at the work that has been published by the Revenue Commissioners, in which they indicate that the effective rate of tax paid here in Ireland for very large employers is very close to the headline rate of corporation rate in Ireland of 12.5%. There are other publications, for example, those that came out from the OECD earlier in the year, that point to the rate in Ireland being very close to our top-line rate, reflecting the fact we have a broad, simple rate, and then there are a small number of exemptions from that, for example, the research and development tax credit.

In regard to the trucks and our exporting sector, we can depend upon that for now and it has been the bedrock of helping our economy to stabilise during 2020. However, as the Deputy knows, it is a world that changes very quickly and is a highly competitive world for the companies involved in the export of goods and services. We have to be ever-vigilant that we are a competitive country and that we are able to ensure those Irish companies, and larger companies that are located in Ireland, continue to be in Ireland and do business from Ireland. If we ever needed a reminder of how important it is to have a diverse range of exporting companies of all shapes and sizes, it is 2020.