Shane Cassells (Meath West, Fianna Fail)
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Deputy Connolly asked the witness about that issue. There was a five-year period of exponential growth. In 2009, 900 companies claimed the R&D credit. That cost the Exchequer €216 million. In 2010, 1,172 companies claimed the credit. The number of companies claiming the credit grew steadily through to 2013, when 1,576 companies did so at a cost of €421 million. In 2014, there was a slight drop in the number of claimants but the cost to the Exchequer was €100 million more than 2013. According to the Revenue report, in 2015, there was a further significant drop to 1,276 companies yet the cost to the Exchequer was €639 million. In a two-year period the cost to the Exchequer increased by €200 million or 15.5% while there was an 18.7% drop in the number of companies claiming the credit. Can the witness explain why that is the case?