Results 14,621-14,640 of 34,135 for speaker:Paschal Donohoe

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Departmental Correspondence (17 Oct 2019)

Paschal Donohoe: I wish to advise the Deputy that a deferred reply will be issued to him in respect of this Parliamentary Question, in line with Standing Order 42A.

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Tax Reliefs Availability (17 Oct 2019)

Paschal Donohoe: There are a number of tax reliefs available to individuals who are carers. The Home Carer Tax Credit is available to married couples or civil partners that are jointly assessed, where one spouse or civil partner stays at home to take care of a dependent person. Its current value is €1,500. The carer spouse or civil partner may earn up to €7,200 per year without affecting the...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Tax Code (17 Oct 2019)

Paschal Donohoe: Irish resident companies are obliged to apply Dividend Withholding Tax (DWT) on dividend payments and other distributions made to Irish taxpayers. Dividends are treated as income and are ultimately liable to income tax at the individual’s marginal rate which is the highest rate of income tax to which they are liable. Universal Social Charge (USC) is also chargeable on the payments and...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Tax Code (17 Oct 2019)

Paschal Donohoe: The flat rate expense (FRE) system is an administrative practice operated by Revenue, where both specific commonality of expenditure exists across an employment category and the statutory requirement for the tax deduction as set out in section 114 Taxes Consolidation Act (TCA) 1997 is satisfied. The purpose of the FRE regime is to ease the administrative burden on Revenue and on employees in...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Revenue Commissioners Enforcement Activity (17 Oct 2019)

Paschal Donohoe: I am advised by Revenue that it does not accept amounts in settlement that are less than the actual amounts due. However, certain circumstances can arise where a taxpayer does not have the financial capacity to pay the additional liability identified during a compliance intervention and can claim inability to pay. Any inability to pay claim must be supported with clear evidence of the...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Capital Expenditure Programme (17 Oct 2019)

Paschal Donohoe: I propose to take Questions Nos. 91 and 92 together. I can confirm that my Department has had no capital projects in the past five years (including the cost of external consultants) in excess of €100 million and nor does it anticipate any to commence in the next five years.

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Budget 2020 (17 Oct 2019)

Paschal Donohoe: Significant progress has been made in recent years in reducing the prevalence of poverty in our country.  CSO data shows that the proportion of those living in consistent poverty dropped from 9.0% in 2013 to 6.7% in 2017. CSO data on poverty is available at this link: For most people, employment is the primary path out of poverty and we have created thousands of new jobs, with a record...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Brexit Issues (17 Oct 2019)

Paschal Donohoe: Public Procurement is governed by EU legislation and National rules and guidelines. The aim of these rules is to promote an open, competitive and non-discriminatory public procurement regime which delivers best value for money. In this regard, it is important to point out that the rules underpinning procurement have not changed due to Brexit, as the procurement Directives already...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Departmental Correspondence (17 Oct 2019)

Paschal Donohoe: I wish to advise the Deputy that a deferred reply will be issued to him in respect of this Parliamentary Question, in line with Standing Order 42A.

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Capital Expenditure Programme (17 Oct 2019)

Paschal Donohoe: I propose to take Questions Nos. 99 to 101, inclusive, together. Due to the nature of its role, my Department has had no major capital projects over €100 million funded through its own Vote in the past five years, nor is it expected to have any such projects in the next five years. As part of the ongoing reform of Ireland’s public investment management systems,...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Tax Rebates (16 Oct 2019)

Paschal Donohoe: In my Budget 2020 speech, I announced an increase from €20 to €26 in the carbon tax.  Following the approval of the Dáil, this increase has been applied to Mineral Oil Tax (MOT) rates for mineral oils used as auto-fuels (for cars and trucks) from midnight on 9 October 2019. All other MOT rates remain at their current levels until 1 May 2020 when new rates will...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Credit Union Data (16 Oct 2019)

Paschal Donohoe: Further to Parliamentary Question No. 57 of 3 October 2019, I have been informed by the Central Bank that credit unions provide information on ‘Investments by Counterparty’ on their quarterly Prudential Return. Based on data provided by credit unions on the June 2019 Prudential Return credit unions hold c.€13 billion in deposits and investments with c....

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Budget 2020 (16 Oct 2019)

Paschal Donohoe: In Budget 2020 I announced policy changes to a number of taxation measures with the objective of supporting Enterprise, SMEs and the Agri-sector. This package of measures included the Key Employee Engagement Programme (KEEP), the Employment and Investment Incentive (EII), the Special Assignee Relief Programme (SARP), the Foreign Earnings Deduction (FED) and the...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Employment and Investment Incentive Scheme (16 Oct 2019)

Paschal Donohoe: I understand that the Deputy is referring to the Budget 2020 change to increase the annual investment limit for the Employment and Investment Incentive (EII) from €150,000 to €250,000.  I am advised by Revenue that, taking that proposed change into account, the estimated cost to the Exchequer of increasing the annual investment limit to the amounts indicated by...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Tax Credits (16 Oct 2019)

Paschal Donohoe: I am advised by Revenue that the first and full year costs of further increasing the Earned Income Tax Credit by €150, to equalise the level with the PAYE Credit, are estimated to be in the order of €20m and €35m respectively.

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Tax Credits (16 Oct 2019)

Paschal Donohoe: It is assumed that the Deputy is referring to the Budget 2020 change to increase the Research and Development (R&D) tax credit from 25% to 30% on qualifying expenditure for relevant micro and small companies. This measure is being introduced subject to State aid approval. I am advised by Revenue that the estimated cost of increasing the rate from 30% to the levels indicated by the...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Stability and Growth Pact (16 Oct 2019)

Paschal Donohoe: The reporting of government spending under the Stability and Growth Pact obligations is classified according to the European System of Accounts 2010 (ESA 2010) framework. To avoid penalising spikes in government investment in Gross Fixed Capital Formation (GFCF), the European Commission allows this investment to be averaged over a four year period. This means that only one...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Tribunals of Inquiry Reports (16 Oct 2019)

Paschal Donohoe: The Moriarty Tribunal made a number of recommendations which affected a number of Government Departments.  As Minister for Finance, I can only respond in relation to the recommendations made in relation to my own Department. As the Deputy will be aware, the tribunal pointed out problems to be addressed in our system of financial regulation.  Poor supervision, an overly-deferential...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: VAT Rate Application (16 Oct 2019)

Paschal Donohoe: The standard rate of VAT applies to food supplement products. Shortly after the introduction of VAT, Revenue allowed the zero rate to be applied to certain food supplement products (vitamins, minerals and fish oils). This concessionary approach expanded as the market developed over the years and resulted in the zero rating by Revenue of further similar products, including products other than...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Real Estate Investment Trusts (16 Oct 2019)

Paschal Donohoe: Finance Act 2013 introduced the regime for the operation of Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) in Ireland. The function of the REIT framework is not to provide an overall tax exemption but rather to facilitate collective investment in rental property by removing a double layer of taxation which would otherwise apply on property investment via a corporate vehicle. A number of amendments...