Results 4,221-4,240 of 6,533 for speaker:John Lahart

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Pre-Budget Scrutiny: Minister for Finance (17 Sep 2019)

John Lahart: I refer to changes within the past year.

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Pre-Budget Scrutiny: Minister for Finance (17 Sep 2019)

John Lahart: I do not know the answer to the following question, which relates to the Minister's function with the Revenue Commissioners. We envisage there will be another overrun in the anticipated corporation tax take, that is, that it will exceed expectations. If that happens, how does the Minister intend to use any excess over what was anticipated? The Committee on Budgetary Oversight has...

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Pre-Budget Scrutiny: Minister for Finance (17 Sep 2019)

John Lahart: I understand why the Revenue Commissioners would not share details of the principal contributors but my question is whether there is a facility whereby they can raise red flags for the Minister and highlight if they notice a significant decrease, for example, in the corporation tax collected from one or two of the largest contributors in the past year.

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Pre-Budget Scrutiny: Minister for Finance (17 Sep 2019)

John Lahart: I turn to vehicle registration tax, VRT, for diesel and petrol. I attended a conference earlier where somebody stated that, when taken in the round, the impact of electric cars will be to reduce carbon emissions by approximately 20%. In light of all the ballyhoo, that is not very significant and it does not take into account that when they are run in Ireland, they probably are powered by...

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Scrutiny of Tax Expenditures (Resumed) (11 Sep 2019)

John Lahart: I thank Mr. Coffey and his team. For people who might be interested in this and following it, and for people who read committee and Dáil debates, it is worth recapping why the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council was established. It was to assist the Government in avoiding the mistakes of the past by providing a constant stream of advice. Most people would accept such advice was sadly...

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Scrutiny of Tax Expenditures (Resumed) (11 Sep 2019)

John Lahart: As I understand it, Mr. Coffey is saying is that the package of measures ought to come from within the €600 million and that any amount over and above thatin other words, additional to the €2.8 billionought to be offset by cost-cutting or savings measures across the board.

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Scrutiny of Tax Expenditures (Resumed) (11 Sep 2019)

John Lahart: Mr. Coffey and his colleagues mentioned that a good way to view corporation tax is that it is to Ireland what oil was to Norway. In other words, it is a finite resource. I was taken with the comment that we have embedded much of that tax in our current expenditure. Can Mr. Coffey quantify the amount of corporation tax that has become embedded in our day-to-day spending?

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Scrutiny of Tax Expenditures (Resumed) (11 Sep 2019)

John Lahart: I wish to ask a question on the following comment, which can be found on page 18 of IFAC's report: Successive efforts to bring a large deficit down in the initial post-crisis period proved successful. Yet, in recent years, the Government has used most of the proceeds of a cyclical upswing; reduced interest costs; and unexpected—and possibly temporary—surges in corporation tax...

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Scrutiny of Tax Expenditures (Resumed) (11 Sep 2019)

John Lahart: I could be wrong because emails can be difficult to understand, but I detected a sense of urgency in the request to appear today before the committee. Is that an incorrect understanding?

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Scrutiny of Tax Expenditures (Resumed) (11 Sep 2019)

John Lahart: I am very taken with the words Mr. Coffey attributed to his predecessor that the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council was established "to institutionalise the memory" of the impact of the crash. We must keep that powerful statement in mind and mention it at the start of every meeting. Can Mr. Coffey quantify the proportion of State income stamp duty contributed at its height?

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Scrutiny of Tax Expenditures (Resumed) (11 Sep 2019)

John Lahart: All of those construction-related taxes and incomes-----

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Scrutiny of Tax Expenditures (Resumed) (11 Sep 2019)

John Lahart: Transaction taxes accounted for 20% of the total tax take at that time and corporation tax currently accounts for 18% of the total tax take. As Mr. Tutty stated, budget 2015 predicted a surplus for the first time. If I understood him correctly, corporation tax receipts were predicted to be €5 billion in 2018.

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Scrutiny of Tax Expenditures (Resumed) (11 Sep 2019)

John Lahart: Interest rate payments were predicted to reach-----

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Scrutiny of Tax Expenditures (Resumed) (11 Sep 2019)

John Lahart: In 2015, it was predicted that corporation tax would be €5 billion in 2018 and interest rate payments would be €9 billion in the same year. There has been little or no surplus since 2015. During this period, interest rates halved, which meant we paid half what we expected to pay in interest, and receipts from corporation tax were twice what was predicted. To quote Dr....

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Scrutiny of Tax Expenditures (Resumed) (11 Sep 2019)

John Lahart: My final question is completely unrelated. We have talked about a hard Brexit and a crash-out Brexit. The IFAC has advised, as have others who appeared before the committee, that the Government's approach to Brexit was predicated on a benign outcome and it is only in the recent past that the emphasis has changed. There will be a Brexit of one shape or form. Do we have a sense of the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects Status (6 Sep 2019)

John Lahart: 278. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the progress to date with the building timeline for a school (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35054/19]

Written Answers — Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport: Road Safety Authority Data (6 Sep 2019)

John Lahart: 1568. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the income the Road Safety Authority, RSA, derives from driver tests annually; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35155/19]

Written Answers — Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport: Driver Test Data (6 Sep 2019)

John Lahart: 1569. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the actions he has taken to address the failure rate in driver test centres of circa 50%; and when the matter was last discussed with the Road Safety Authority, RSA. [35156/19]

Written Answers — Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport: Driver Test Data (6 Sep 2019)

John Lahart: 1570. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the process by which driver tests are organised, that is, by way of contract with a third party and the Road Safety Authority, RSA; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35157/19]

Written Answers — Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport: Driver Test Data (6 Sep 2019)

John Lahart: 1571. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the driver test failure and pass statistics for each county other than Dublin in each of the years 2016 to 2018. [35158/19]