Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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We should note that as something to identify for the future. Our economy is an open one and subject to the fluctuations that occur in virtually every other economy . We are not the biggest country in the European Union by a long shot. From time to time, we are informed as to what we should be doing in order to achieve particular things. We all recognise that we need to put our shoulders to the wheel and achieve certain targets on climate change.

To what extent do we have to punish ourselves and inflict pain on our economy in order to achieve X, Y or Z while balancing that against our ability to deliver and the impact that delivery is likely to have? This is an important question. For example, the dairy sector is regarded as a serious offender in this regard. If we closed it down, it would be the country or countries that then supplied the market and bought all the carbon credits they needed that would benefit the most. Nothing would change in the overall situation because people would still have to eat. The same scenario applies in the beef sector and almost every other aspect of our economy. If one went to some of the countries that are our competitors, one would see obvious issues but what are they doing about them? Are they tackling them to the same extent as us or are we at the end of the chain and expected to make greater sacrifices than others? My strong advice is that we have to do what is necessary to achieve certain targets, and we are doing that.

The aviation industry has been singled out. There are limitations in what can be done. The fuel can be changed over time, which I hope is happening. However, we live on an island and would have difficulty getting off it if not by boat or aeroplane. It is a problem for us, unlike the rest of our EU colleagues, who live on the mainland of Europe and can get into an electric car or truck and drive in any direction they wish to go about their business.

The Cathaoirleach will be glad to know I am coming to an end. I get worried about the Apple escrow fund from time to time. Occasionally, someone raises the issue. For example, it has been raised in the European institutions in recent weeks, with doubt cast over it. To what extent are we subject to their intrusions, given that taxation is the preserve of national governments across Europe? The competition Commissioner decided to intervene on the basis that favourable conditions were being provided in this country to Apple. Before this case, I had believed that the entire manufacturing sector was treated the same, with a 12.5% tax on their profits. Following a long and arduous discussion on an agreement brokered by the OECD, I also thought that we had reached a situation whereby a corporation tax rate of 15% would apply to everyone across the board. However, it now appears that that is not so and that we can expect more to come. At the same time, there has been a slowing down in corporation tax receipts recently. We could find ourselves caught between two forces, one of which is the slowing down. I do not know the reason for that, as I do not have information on its cause. We could damage our economy – the agrifood sector, which helped to bail us out of the financial crash, the pharma sector, which helped to bail us out of the crash, and the tourism sector. These are three vital sectors. If we find ourselves unable to enable them to deliver their goods and services during good times, we may find ourselves very restricted during bad times. What are the witnesses’ opinions in this regard?