Ulick Burke (Galway East, Fine Gael)

Will the Minister of State ask the Government to reconsider its recent decision to abolish the patent royalty relief? During the past four or five years, various Ministers have often referred to our smart economy and the importance of its continued development. One imagines we would be encouraging the people in question to be innovative and to develop their entrepreneurial endeavours. As such, the abolition of this relief is a serious retrograde step in respect of the many small people who have tried to develop indigenous industries, particularly in the current climate. I fully accept that many of the big people, as it were, abused the system to some degree.

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