Results 5,901-5,920 of 32,602 for speaker:Paschal Donohoe

Supplementary Budget for Rural Communities and Farmers: Motion [Private Members] (23 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: It is telling and hopeful to hear other Deputies have the courage to make the case for carbon taxing. Some made the case that they think it could be done differently but at least they are making that case. The Rural Independent Group has brought forward proposals with no idea of how much they would cost and ignoring the fact that through our tax code there is already relief in place for...

Supplementary Budget for Rural Communities and Farmers: Motion [Private Members] (23 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: Again and again, the claim is brought forward that we can respond to the climate crisis without difficult choices. We heard that from Sinn Féin when, for example, so many of its Deputies made the point that more needs to be done on the retrofitting programme and more detail needs to be brought forward, yet it is against the tax that is needed to help to pay for it. Sinn Féin...

Supplementary Budget for Rural Communities and Farmers: Motion [Private Members] (23 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: I know it is difficult. This is a choice that involves difficulty for many. In tackling a climate crisis, to claim it can be done without choices regarding how carbon is taxed is at best dishonest.

Supplementary Budget for Rural Communities and Farmers: Motion [Private Members] (23 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: It is a dishonesty that is repeated again and again by Sinn Féin.

Supplementary Budget for Rural Communities and Farmers: Motion [Private Members] (23 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: I would appreciate the Ceann Comhairle's discretion to make a final point. The Rural Independent Group has brought forward proposals in respect of which there is no costing or recognition of the challenge that is involved in responding to the challenges that we acknowledge are real for so many. The Government is acting. We are responding. The House heard from the Minister, Deputy...

Supplementary Budget for Rural Communities and Farmers: Motion [Private Members] (23 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: It creates the sense of easy solutions. In the Rural Independent Group proposals, there is no honesty about how they can be paid for and the challenges that the Government faces in responding to those challenges.

Supplementary Budget for Rural Communities and Farmers: Motion [Private Members] (23 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: We have acted. We have brought forward measures. We know that prices and costs are increasing and we appreciate that is a challenge for many people, but this Government has acted.

Supplementary Budget for Rural Communities and Farmers: Motion [Private Members] (23 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: In what we announced in the budget and the measures we brought forward recently, we have acted to make a difference.

Supplementary Budget for Rural Communities and Farmers: Motion [Private Members] (23 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: For those on social welfare benefits, including the living alone allowance, it means €600 to €800 of extra support. For those who are on the standard rate of income tax, it means between €400 and €600 extra.

Supplementary Budget for Rural Communities and Farmers: Motion [Private Members] (23 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: I can well understand the behaviour of the Independent Deputies opposite. They are embarrassed-----

Supplementary Budget for Rural Communities and Farmers: Motion [Private Members] (23 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: -----to have brought forward proposals for a mini-budget-----

Supplementary Budget for Rural Communities and Farmers: Motion [Private Members] (23 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: -----with no sense of their cost or how they would be paid for. I hope those they claim to represent are looking in and taking note of their behaviour and recognise the dishonesty involved in bringing forward these ideas and calling for a mini-budget, while at no point in the debate giving any recognition of the cost or of what is involved in that regard.

Supplementary Budget for Rural Communities and Farmers: Motion [Private Members] (23 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: For all of those reasons, the Government has put forward an amendment. We reject the attempts by the Rural Independent Group-----

Supplementary Budget for Rural Communities and Farmers: Motion [Private Members] (23 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: -----to pretend that they understand the difficulties that many are facing-----

Supplementary Budget for Rural Communities and Farmers: Motion [Private Members] (23 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: -----and their efforts here to pretend that they have a solution to it.

Supplementary Budget for Rural Communities and Farmers: Motion [Private Members] (23 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: I thank all the Deputies for the contributions they have made to this very important debate. I reiterate my appreciation of the great challenges that many people are facing at the moment as we see the rising cost of energy and fuel. That is why the Government has brought forward measures to aim to provide assistance to those who need it the most, accompanied by the rebate for energy bills...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Energy Prices (23 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: The Disabled Drivers and Disabled Passengers Fuel Grant is regulated by S.I. 635/2015 and provides for payment of a fuel grant based on a the value of excise chargeable per litre rate of fuel. The grant is based on the excise component of the fuel, not the market price. The current value is €0.636 for petrol, €0.535 for diesel and €0.118 for liquefied petroleum gas (LPG)...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Energy Prices (23 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: As the Deputy is aware, the final retail price of fuel is determined by a number of factors including the costs of production, distribution, global market factors, international exchange rates, taxation, wholesale market contracts as well as individual retail pricing policies. Ireland’s taxation of fuel is based on European Union law as set out in the Energy Tax Directive which sets...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Tax Code (23 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: As the Deputy will be aware, agricultural relief allows the value of agricultural assets gifted or inherited (including farmland, buildings, stock) to be reduced by 90% of its value for the calculation of a Capital Acquisition Tax (CAT) liability. This is a valuable relief from CAT and a fundamental objective of this relief is that it is availed of by genuine, and active farmers, and that it...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Tax Reliefs (23 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: Recent Government policy has been focused on strengthening the environmental rationale behind company car taxation. Until the Finance Act 2019 Ireland’s vehicle benefit-in-kind regime was unusual in that there was no overall CO2 rationale in the regime, despite a CO2 based vehicle BIK regime being legislated for as far back as 2008 (but never having been commenced). Section 6 of the...