Results 22,541-22,560 of 35,959 for speaker:Pearse Doherty

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Mortgage Arrears (18 Nov 2015)

Pearse Doherty: I object in the strongest possible terms to the decision to rule out of order a number of questions my colleagues and I had tabled to the Minister. It makes a farce of the House that elected Members are being prevented from asking him questions related to the ongoing IBRC investigation, including the role played by the Department and when the Minister became aware of the difficulties. He...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Mortgage Arrears (18 Nov 2015)

Pearse Doherty: I am not sure if the Minister is aware of this, but the crisis has not gone away. In the dying months of the Government's term of office, 98,137 people are in mortgage arrears. Croke Park could not hold the principal of all of the households where the mortgage on the family home is in arrears. Reports indicate that 4,440 requests for repossession were made to the Courts Service in the...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Central Bank of Ireland Investigations (18 Nov 2015)

Pearse Doherty: 26. To ask the Minister for Finance the status of the Central Bank of Ireland’s investigation into tracker mortgage infringements by banks; the number of banks being investigated, and where issues have been found; and when the investigation will be completed. [40344/15]

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Property Tax Exemptions (18 Nov 2015)

Pearse Doherty: 27. To ask the Minister for Finance his plans to exempt a complex (details supplied) and other residential complexes, that are unsafe to live in, from the local property tax. [40342/15]

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Credit Unions Regulation (18 Nov 2015)

Pearse Doherty: 38. To ask the Minister for Finance his plans to engage with the credit union movement before the commencement of the remaining element of the 2012 Credit Union and Co-operation with Overseers Regulators Act. [40340/15]

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Mortgage Interest Rates (18 Nov 2015)

Pearse Doherty: 40. To ask the Minister for Finance the number of banks that have decreased their standard variable interest rates in 2015; the size of these changes; and his plans to legislate to allow the Central Bank of Ireland to cap these rates. [40343/15]

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Mortgage to Rent Scheme Data (18 Nov 2015)

Pearse Doherty: 166. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government the number of properties that have been successfully purchased by local authorities through the local authority mortgage-to-rent scheme, by local authority, in tabular form. [40848/15]

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Mortgage to Rent Scheme Data (18 Nov 2015)

Pearse Doherty: 167. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government the number of properties which have been successfully purchased through the mortgage-to-rent scheme, ABH and LAMTRs, since 1 July 2015, by county, in tabular form. [40849/15]

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Finance Bill 2015: Committee Stage (17 Nov 2015)

Pearse Doherty: This section relates to the increased film credit threshold. The Minister is well aware that Sinn Féin welcomed the changes made last year in moving from film tax relief on investments by individuals to tax relief for production companies. Is any increase in the level of film production expected as a result of the amendments made in this year's Finance Bill and has any cost-benefit...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Finance Bill 2015: Committee Stage (17 Nov 2015)

Pearse Doherty: The change was made only last year. I am on the record calling for a review of many of the tax reliefs on an annual basis, although some of them do not seem to get the same attention. There is a 40% increase in the eligible limit for production companies, from €50 million to €70 million. The Minister mentioned that the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht was...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Finance Bill 2015: Committee Stage (17 Nov 2015)

Pearse Doherty: I have two other questions to seek clarity on this. Even though the title of it is, "Relief for investment in films", the Minister states it is also relief for investment in series, such as "Game of Thrones".

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Finance Bill 2015: Committee Stage (17 Nov 2015)

Pearse Doherty: Is the limit on an annual basis?

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Finance Bill 2015: Committee Stage (17 Nov 2015)

Pearse Doherty: If a series is thinking of shooting here and it shoots series one here, that would be deemed as a project but series two, that they might shoot next year, would not be seen as the same project; it would be a separate project. Is that the case?

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Finance Bill 2015: Committee Stage (17 Nov 2015)

Pearse Doherty: Lastly, the minimum that must be spent on production is €0.25 million. We are seeing an increase on the upper end, up to €70 million eligible for the corporation tax credit. However, the minimum that needs to be spent on a production is still €0.25 million. What of the fact that the Government is not reducing that to encourage smaller budget movies, home-grown films...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Finance Bill 2015: Committee Stage (17 Nov 2015)

Pearse Doherty: Would reducing the threshold below €0.25 million for the cost of production enhance that building up of the skills base? With a threshold of the type of €70 million, one is talking about films such as "Star Wars", series such as "Game of Thrones" and Universal Studios. One is talking about attracting established offshore entities to produce here which has all of the revenue...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Finance Bill 2015: Committee Stage (17 Nov 2015)

Pearse Doherty: How can the Minister be sure that this scheme is not being used as a tax avoidance mechanism by high net worth individuals?

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Finance Bill 2015: Committee Stage (17 Nov 2015)

Pearse Doherty: In terms of the profile of individuals who are investing, how do we know that this measure is not being used as a mechanism to reduce the effective tax rate downwards? Has Revenue undertaken any analysis in this regard and has there been any cost benefit analysis done of the relief?

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Finance Bill 2015: Committee Stage (17 Nov 2015)

Pearse Doherty: Revenue might know that but I do not know it. How does the Minister know that this is not a scheme that is being used by high net worth individuals? We have the data in regard to other schemes. In terms of the property tax reliefs that were put in place under previous Administrations, reports after the fact were to the effect that they were used predominantly by high net worth individuals...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Finance Bill 2015: Committee Stage (17 Nov 2015)

Pearse Doherty: Sorry, could the Minister repeat the last point?

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Finance Bill 2015: Committee Stage (17 Nov 2015)

Pearse Doherty: Nobody is suggesting that anybody in this room does not support what Revenue does. The question is in regard to the profile of individuals who are investing under this scheme. We have raised similar questions in the past in regard to other schemes, including the section 23 reliefs in terms of if they were to be abolished what type of profile of individual would have benefitted or lost as a...