Dan Boyle (Cork South Central, Green Party)

We do not need to spend too much time on this amendment. As Deputy Bruton stated in moving the amendment, we have covered most of the ground already in amendment No. 1. The theme of the contributions appears to be that if the Minister is not prepared to have some kind of refund mechanism for the additional moneys he finds in the coffers due to the indifference or ignorance of taxpayers, he may consider more innovative ways of recycling the money.

Perhaps he should consider a dormant reliefs fund to match the dormant accounts fund for the unclaimed accounts in insurance companies and banks. Perhaps he would prefer the mechanism used in the national lottery for unclaimed winnings, where money is recycled in other causes. He may even increase the amount of money given to the National Pensions Reserve Fund. At least there would be a recycling element to this.

The point is that money is in the coffers that would not be there if people knew of and were able to claim their entitlements. The Minister sees a political benefit in this, and if I were in Government I would probably see the same. In terms of tax equity and fairness, it is an issue that must be tackled.

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