Brian Lenihan Jnr (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)

These charges, like the charge on second homes, will finance the provision of local services by local authorities.

High Earners Must Pay Their Fair Share

We have set our face against increasing the burden of income tax. However, the Government wants high earners who avail of tax incentive schemes to contribute more in the current difficult circumstances. Accordingly, for the tax year 2010, the effective rate of income tax for those benefiting from reliefs will increase from 20% to 30%, on top of which they will also pay PRSI and levies. This represents a significant tightening of the restriction and it will yield approximately €55 million in a full year. The entry point to the restriction will now occur at an adjusted income level of €125,000, with the full restriction applying at €400,000. I will examine the curtailment and removal of further reliefs in the context of the finance Bill.

Our tax treatment of non-resident individuals is broadly in line with that of most other OECD countries. However, we must ensure that every wealthy Irish domiciliary who pays little or no income tax makes a contribution to the State, especially during times of economic and fiscal difficulty. For this reason, we will introduce measures which will impose on all Irish nationals and domiciled individuals whose worldwide income exceeds €1 million and whose Irish-located capital is greater than €5 million a requirement to pay an Irish domicile levy of €200,000 per annum, regardless of where they are tax resident.

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