Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I am well aware of the base erosion and profit sharing, BEPS, process. I dealt with it myself in Cabinet and at the OECD in Paris. The amendment suggests we should move away from blanket resistance to something we should, at least, be exploring. I refer to how this digital economy and the digital sector, which is making incredible profits - it is the most profitable industry on the planet - can pay its fair share of taxes. The amendment suggests we start that process in this jurisdiction.

We must participate fully in the OECD process. The base erosion and profit shifting process was something we very much engaged with and we were certainly leaders in that field during Labour's time in government. I presume that is continuing. In the domestic economy we must still be prepared to look at issues as our own citizens and people in any forum I attend anywhere on the planet have a view that Ireland facilitates tax avoidance. Whether we like it or not, that is the perception. It is not helpful to our international reputation.

I listened to Deputy Michael McGrath and in truth, past Governments facilitated the double Irish tax scheme and procedures we wound down because they were not acceptable. In a world where people are impoverished, there is the notion that enormous corporations make enormous profits that are not taxed. We cannot wash our hands of that. I understand the Minister is of the view that this work is already done but I have not seen it. Sending officials to speak to a committee of the House is not the sort of analysis I am talking about here. Maybe the timeframe involved is too narrow but it is something we should engage with so we can be prepared to deal with the reputational issues we have already endured and robustly argue, perhaps not for the model that the Minister finds objectionable but another model of taxing the digital economy. Let us be the proponents of such a model rather than be perceived as the defenders of the indefensible.

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