Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 111:

In page 100, between lines 21 and 22, to insert the following:

"(a) in subsection (2A), by substituting "Subject to subsection (2D), for the purposes of subsection (2)," for "For the purposes of subsection (2),",".

Amendments No. 111 and 112 relate to section 56 of the Bill. Briefly, by way of background, section 56 amends section 1086 of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997, which relates to the publication of the names of tax defaulters. The purpose of the amendments made by section 56 is to ensure that the scheme of publication in respect of tax defaulters operates as intended and clarifies the portion of any settlement sum that may be published in circumstances where the settlement sum comprises an amount relating to a qualifying disclosure and an amount relating to matters not subject to such a disclosure. As a result of the changes proposed in section 56, only the portion relating to the other matters will be publishable.

The reason for these further amendments is primarily to correct a technical drafting error made in amending the section on Committee Stage and, in doing so, to clarify aspects of the section. Specifically, amendment No. 112 is necessary to remove an incorrect reference to subsection (2A) in paragraph (b)(ii) of new subsection (2D), as inserted on Committee Stage. It also provides, on a stand-alone basis and in a much clearer fashion, that where Revenue accepts payment of the full amount of a claim in circumstances where there is both a qualifying disclosure and other tax defaults, it will be deemed to have accepted the part of the full amount that relates to the other defaults on foot of an agreement with the taxpayer to refrain from initiating court proceedings, etc. This will allow the name of the defaulter to be published in respect of the other tax defaults once the publication criteria are met in respect of those defaults. The amendment will thus allow new subsection (2D) to operate as intended. It is also necessary to make the existing subsection (2A) subject to new subsection (2D) and amendment No. 111 achieves that.

I commend these amendments to the House.

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