Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

The following amendment in my name, which was ruled out of order, was to propose the removal of section 86 of the Capital Acquisitions Tax Consolidation Act so I thank the Minister for the amendments he brought forward in section 51 of this Bill to remove this abuse and loophole that had developed. Frankly, it is a very simple and clear example of how people involved with tax avoidance comb through the Finance Acts to see such mechanisms. This example appeared quite straightforward, as parents could gift €310,000 to their children from a capital acquisitions perspective entirely tax-free. However, using this mechanism, people could buy very valuable houses for their children and over a period transfer them totally tax-free.

The Minister has confirmed some additional information. There has been much talk about the individual who bought four houses for €1 million each for each child. It is important that the Minister elaborates somewhat on the summary information read into the record of the House. That is empowering in cases where sometimes people feel it is open to everyone to abuse the tax system. The vast majority of people in this country pay their taxes and are compliant. They are citizens who support the paying of taxes to fund health and education services. It is important to send a message to them that if people abuse the system, we will change it to close that loophole. For that reason, I urge the Minister to publish the report.

See this speech in context