Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Another issue relates to business, and farming comes into that area, as well as other forms of business. It relates to the ability of individuals to write off against tax a major purchase to enhance their business and the degree to which that is or is not available. Is this equally available to everybody involved - big businesses, small businesses, big farmers and small farmers? How strict are the rules about write-offs and refunds? I know, for instance, that the bigger operators in business, such as in the construction sector or farming - I presume the same rules apply to them - can spend €100,000 or €200,000 on a machine that is an integral part of their business and they can write off a specific amount, a yearly amount or the whole amount in one year.