Results 46,181-46,200 of 49,836 for speaker:Stephen Donnelly

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Finance Bill 2016: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Nov 2016)

Stephen Donnelly: I fully support the policy intent, which is to apply withholding tax in circumstances where it should be applied but where it is either not being applied or being avoided at present. However, if one compares the new IREF world into which we are moving to that which existed in 2010, it would appear that a vast swathe of property investment is going to move largely outside the tax net. We all...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Finance Bill 2016: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Nov 2016)

Stephen Donnelly: Yes.

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Finance Bill 2016: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Nov 2016)

Stephen Donnelly: It does not apply to REITs?

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Finance Bill 2016: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Nov 2016)

Stephen Donnelly: I accept that but, essentially, what we are clarifying in law is that there are two different tax regimes. There is one for the ordinary citizen who buys a one-bedroom apartment because he or she pays USC, PRSI and income tax on the rent and full capital gains tax on the sale - if there are any gains. Then there is a separate tax regime for rich people who can afford the...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Finance Bill 2016: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Nov 2016)

Stephen Donnelly: Not really. There are the normal tax deductions, which are business costs. As an analogy, we are applying what we are doing in property to non-property. If a person has the money to open a launderette, café, popcorn stand or sweetshop, he will pay corporation tax on any profits. If he incurs any capital gains, he will pay full capital gains tax, withholding tax will be applied to any...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Finance Bill 2016: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Nov 2016)

Stephen Donnelly: That sort of investment opportunity is not available to the average person. People-----

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Finance Bill 2016: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Nov 2016)

Stephen Donnelly: Groups of 20 average citizens do not get together to set up collective asset management vehicles. Wealthy people who can afford lawyers set up collective asset management vehicles.

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Finance Bill 2016: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Nov 2016)

Stephen Donnelly: Sure, it can be done through a pension fund, but nonetheless we are now embedding in law a situation that states that a small property investor will pay a range of taxes but a big property investor will not. That is what this is doing. It is just like saying that if a person can open a sweetshop he will pay a range of taxes, but if he can open a €20 million company he will not. Does...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Finance Bill 2016: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Nov 2016)

Stephen Donnelly: I appreciate that and I have no problem with the logic, which is taking the current situation and saying it will make it a bit better. However, the current situation is the result of the past five or six years of massive tax breaks on property. We can see what has happened. We know that the property investors were approached, told that these new vehicles that are tax free have been created...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Finance Bill 2016: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Nov 2016)

Stephen Donnelly: Let me make two quick points. First, that a company pays tax and then the individual shareholders pay income tax on the post-tax profits is not double taxation. That happens in every company around the world. The company pays its corporation tax and whatever else as well as the shareholders and the shareholders pay tax. Double taxation occurs when, for example, a company invests in a...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Finance Bill 2016: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Nov 2016)

Stephen Donnelly: That is not what is going on in the property market. The funds directly own the property. It is not as if a fund owns the ice cream shop, the ice cream shop is taxed, the fund is then taxed and then the shareholders are taxed. That would be double taxation, but that is not what is happening. It is not as if the funds own property companies that are paying tax and we are saying that the...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Finance Bill 2016: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Nov 2016)

Stephen Donnelly: This is the section 110 companies which are not allowed to own the property and can only own the loan. They too get direct income from the loans in the interest and capital payments. We will leave it at that. It would be very useful to get a report from the Department looking at the evolution of property tax in Ireland over the last ten years because I believe it would show the following....

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospice Services Provision (15 Nov 2016)

Stephen Donnelly: 440. To ask the Minister for Health the factors that led to the need for an additional €1 million in funding for Wicklow Hospice; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34431/16]

Written Answers — Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport: Traffic Data (15 Nov 2016)

Stephen Donnelly: 671. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if a traffic survey of the N11 has been conducted; if so, the results of that survey; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34433/16]

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Finance Bill 2016: Committee Stage (Resumed) (10 Nov 2016)

Stephen Donnelly: I have a query on the same topic. The last time I looked at this issue was about two years ago as it applied to the charity sector. Some businesses were able to get around this by recognising it and providing additional payments in lieu, which is absolutely not the way to do it. I support Deputy McGrath's amendment. Perhaps the Minister could also ask his officials to look at this measure...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Finance Bill 2016: Committee Stage (Resumed) (10 Nov 2016)

Stephen Donnelly: Yes.

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Finance Bill 2016: Committee Stage (Resumed) (10 Nov 2016)

Stephen Donnelly: I move amendment No. 71:In page 30, between lines 26 and 27, to insert the following:“(3) Where an individual has rented their primary residence and is also renting another property, to apply full deductibility of rent paid on rent received, for the purpose of calculating tax liability.”. One does not like being the last amendment after a four hour session. This amendment is...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Finance Bill 2016: Committee Stage (Resumed) (10 Nov 2016)

Stephen Donnelly: I thank the Minister for his response. I cannot see the unintended consequences. The idea of someone using the measure to rent out a string of properties does not hold up. This is a very simple idea. The idea is that if one owns a home, rents it out and pays rent on another, one can offset one against the other. Let me put it at its simplest. Imagine two families living beside each...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Finance Bill 2016: Committee Stage (Resumed) (10 Nov 2016)

Stephen Donnelly: If I could sit down with the officials, it would be very useful. To put it very simply without going into any of the detail, let us say rent in Dublin is about €1,500 a month now and for most the costs probably amount to about €500 a month. A lot of them are on tracker mortgages so the interest payments are reasonably low for now. With regard to the worked examples I have...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Finance Bill 2016: Committee Stage (Resumed) (10 Nov 2016)

Stephen Donnelly: Sure. That is it. I would like to sit down with the officials. I am more than happy to put case studies together. Will the Minister or Department put together ways they think it could be abused? It would be very helpful in teasing this out. Is it something the Minister thinks we could do?