Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

During the course of the Committee Stage debate the Minister referred to having a plan to review with the Revenue Commissioners a number of areas which he indicated might yield something like €100 million over five years. It might be useful for the Minister to clarify that. What are the areas that are to be investigated? In the context of budgetary oversight and so on, we are supposed to have information. To be honest and fair, many workers did not know about the potential withdrawal of the baseline expenses to which they are entitled. Given that the allowances are so small, particularly if one takes into account people like shop workers who receive an allowance of €120 a year, their removal would cancel the effect of the budget for those who receive them. It would take any gain they got in the budget away from them. I welcome the postponement to 2020, but the Minister should remember that these were introduced a long time ago, perhaps 50, 60, or 70 years ago. They have been available in respect of a variety of different jobs and professions for a very long time.

The Minister should bear in mind, when talking about rebalancing the tax system, that PAYE workers deserve to be considered in terms of fairness. Much of this Government's message is around people who are self-employed, but it should be borne in mind that self-employed people prepare accounts or have accounts prepared for them. They have significant expenses deductions. The expenditure is in the interests of the business but the deductions are significant. The Minister knows that the bulk, if not all, of the income of everybody sitting in this room is subject to PAYE. It is a pretty flat rate system, which is proper, and which includes relatively few allowances that do not also apply to the self-employed. I am glad the Minister is reconsidering it. It might be appropriate to abandon it.

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