Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The special assignee relief programme, SARP, is a tax concession for the temporary placement in Ireland of senior executives currently employed elsewhere by a multinational company. In essence, if we can attract the correct strategic senior executives to Ireland, he or she may bring hundreds more jobs.

The business case for SARP is to make it easier for companies to locate strategic leaders in Ireland for a short-term assignment in order to facilitate the establishment of job-creating opportunities in Ireland. Rapid and successful ramp up of projects frequently requires such assignments. It is regarded by the IDA as an important tool in attracting mobile investment and in facilitating its successful delivery of targets in Ireland.

In advance of budget 2012, I received representations from the independent enterprise development agencies - Forfás, IDA, Enterprise Ireland and Science Foundation Ireland - for improvements to SARP. As the Deputy will be aware, SARP was improved and streamlined in budget 2012. I received further similar representations from the enterprise development agencies for further improvements in advance of budget 2013. The pre-budget 2012 and 2013 submissions of a wide range of industry representative organisations, for example, IBEC and the American Chamber of Commerce, included recommendations to improve SARP. The CEO of the IDA has called for improvements to SARP in order to strengthen the tools Ireland uses to attract, retain and develop foreign direct investment.

The various pre-budget submissions received have called for improvements to the attractiveness of SARP. My pre-budget 2013 submission to the Minister for Finance called for a reduction in the personal tax rate under SARP from 35.7% to 30%. Technically, it was proposed that this would be achieved via a 23% income tax rate together with the 7% universal social charge. Such an improvement would strengthen the ability of Ireland's SARP to be used as a tool in attracting foreign direct investment.

The five-year lower personal tax rate under SARP is targeted at individuals currently working outside of Ireland. Many of the senior executives claiming tax relief under SARP would not have moved to Ireland if it were not for SARP. The costs of SARP are more than offset via the economic benefits. Many other jurisdictions against which Ireland competes for foreign direct investment have SARP-type personal tax incentives to attract senior executives. Ireland is in a jobs crisis and we must do whatever we can to attract and create jobs.

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