Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 61:

In page 97, between lines 23 and 24, to insert the following: “Report on applying on the application of a zero rate of VAT on children’s car safety seats

56.The Minister shall, within six months of the passing of this Act, prepare and lay before Dáil Éireann a report on the application of a zero rate of VAT on children’s car safety seats, including baby seats, child seats, booster seats or booster cushions.”.

This amendment seeks to prepare a report on the application of a zero rate of VAT on children's car safety seats including baby seats, child seats, booster seats and booster cushions. I will also speak to amendment No. 62, which looks at options in terms of the application of a zero or reduced rate of VAT on school uniforms.

Under the VAT directive, children's car safety seats now have a zero rate of VAT applied but are currently charged at the reduced rate. As the Minister knows, it is the law for children to use car seats when they travel. That is a tax that disproportionately impacts on those on lower incomes and those with multiple children. Indeed, the cost of the safety equipment can put some of the children at risk through no fault of their own because people simply cannot afford the more expensive or safer types of seats. Therefore, given that the directive now allows for us to zero rate this essential safety equipment, it would be appropriate for this to be examined in terms of VAT, for which the amendment calls.

It is a legal requirement that up to when a child reaches a certain age, height and weight, he or she must be in a certain type of seat moving from baby seats, which will have different levels of safety depending on how much is spent on them or the types of seats, up to booster seats, which are relatively cheap in the context of the earlier types of seats. These are for older children to ensure the safety belt does not choke them in a scenario where the brakes are pressed suddenly.

Amendment No. 62 looks at the zero rate of VAT applied to children's clothing and footwear, which already exists under law, for those aged under 11 years. We know that school costs are significant and that they disproportionately hit lower income families. Really, we are asking whether there is any scope at all to reduce the rate of VAT on school uniforms and whether that is permissible under the EU legislation. I am not sure if it is myself. The report would look at a way around this. Those are the two amendments I propose.