Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees
Wednesday, 16 January 2019
Committee on Budgetary Oversight
Fiscal Assessment Report: Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform
Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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We are looking at that very issue. I outlined in my opening statement some of the difficulties we have from a timing point of view. For the first time of which I am aware, I indicated at the end of last year that we do not believe the amount of the corporation tax collected for 2018 is sustainable. We believe it is a one-off and that figure is €700 million. I am examining proposals on how to form a further view on the sustainability of corporation tax. We have taken two actions to address that risk now. First, we have built our tax forecasts for 2019 on the basis of a sum between €900 million and €1 billion lower than the amount collected in 2018. Second, this risk is the key reason I decided to increase the VAT rate on the hospitality and service sector. It is only through adopting such measures that we have a prospect of being able to reduce, in turn, our reliance on corporation tax in future.