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

I am surprised at the Deputy's remarks. I should not need to tell any Member of the Oireachtas that there are no deals in our tax regime. I am sure the Deputy was party to the debates on the Finance Bill. Our legislation is set out clearly. There are no special deals with any companies. Such special deals apply in some countries which are competitors of ours which spin their own tax deals for individual projects. It is the categoric truth that this never happens in Ireland. This country is categorically not a tax haven. Tax havens have been defined clearly by the OECD. Ireland is co-operating with the OECD in ensuring that there is not artificial movement of profits. There is an international study of how companies pay their taxes.

I am surprised the Deputy would take as gospel the word of some politician from another jurisdiction who accuses us of being a tax haven. That is not the case; Ireland is not a tax haven and never has been. I agree that we need sustainable competitive advantage. Last October, Sinn Féin talked about having a €13 billion spend. However, at budget time only a couple of months later, that had evaporated from its programme-----

See this speech in context