Results 2,341-2,360 of 27,019 for speaker:Michael Noonan
- Bank Guarantee Scheme (5 Jul 2011)
Michael Noonan: I am glad the Deputy still has the same charitable view of other people's motives that he has had since he was first elected to this House. My statement in Washington was very carefully thought out and phrased. I know exactly why I made that statement and why I made it on that occasion, and I intend to pursue it in the autumn. I do not know whether I will be able to pursue it successfully,...
- Bank Guarantee Scheme (5 Jul 2011)
Michael Noonan: Ireland's bailout agreement as negotiated by the previous Government is with the IMF, the European Commission and the European Central Bank; it is not with the American Government. I intend discussing it with the European Central Bank, which is the body that does not agree to burden sharing with senior bondholders and I already discussed it in Washington with the IMF. I discussed it with...
- Bank Guarantee Scheme (5 Jul 2011)
Michael Noonan: I was seeking the assistance of the American Government on other issues and particularly the assistance of its Secretary of the Treasury, Mr. Geithner. I certainly did not go to Washington to start making accusations even if those accusations were framed as a question.
- Bank Guarantee Scheme (5 Jul 2011)
Michael Noonan: It is an accusatory question.
- Bank Guarantee Scheme (5 Jul 2011)
Michael Noonan: Of course it is an accusation, framed as a question.
- EU-IMF Programme (5 Jul 2011)
Michael Noonan: As part of the memorandum of understanding on specific economic policy conditionality of the joint EU-IMF programme of financial support for Ireland, budget 2012 is to include an overall budgetary consolidation package amounting to at least â¬3.6 billion. This was the figure contained in the original memorandum of understanding agreed at the time of entering into the joint programme late...
- EU-IMF Programme (5 Jul 2011)
Michael Noonan: That is a very interesting question, but we are a long way from the budget which will be announced early in December. The Deputy will recall from the memorandum of understanding that while the target that has been recited for 2012 has been â¬3.6 billion, there is another target not so frequently mentioned, which is achieving a deficit of 8.6%. We hope the means, a â¬3.6 billion...
- EU-IMF Programme (5 Jul 2011)
Michael Noonan: I am not saying that as precisely as the Deputy is putting it. I am saying there are two targets: one is a monetary target of â¬3.6 billion and the other is a deficit target of 8.6% of GDP. To try to get the two of those aligned is what has to be done. Already, the target we have provided to Europe would get us to 8.6% with an adjustment of â¬3.6 billion, and there are other estimates...
- EU-IMF Programme (5 Jul 2011)
Michael Noonan: No, it is not a must but, obviously, it is a matter for negotiation. The assumption is that an adjustment of â¬3.6 billion will get one to a deficit of 8.6%. As the year goes by, we will know, but much will depend on the year-end figure. Obviously, if we have a year-end figure which exceeds the target, then the adjustment would not be as strong as would be required in the Estimates....
- EU-IMF Programme (5 Jul 2011)
Michael Noonan: It is a minimum adjustment.
- EU-IMF Programme (5 Jul 2011)
Michael Noonan: The EU portion of the EU-IMF programme funding for Ireland is made up of the European financial stabilisation mechanism, EFSM, the European financial stability facility, EFSF, and the bilateral loans from the UK, Sweden and Denmark. Of these, only the EFSM relates directly to the European Union. Based on full drawdown of the â¬22.5 billion from the EFSM, the current margin of 2.925% and an...
- EU-IMF Programme (5 Jul 2011)
Michael Noonan: It is very fair to say that when we talk about a bailout for Ireland, or indeed Greece or Portugal, we are not talking about grant-in-aid. We are getting a facility to borrow money and we are paying a very high interest charge on it. We are not in receipt of charity or of grant-in-aid. It is simply a loan facility to keep us going when we could not raise money on the markets, and the...
- Tax Code (5 Jul 2011)
Michael Noonan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 33, 55 and 78 together. I wish to advise the Deputies that companies operating in Ireland are chargeable to corporation tax at the 12.5% rate on their trading profits. A higher 25% rate applies in respect of investment, rental and other non-trading profits and chargeable capital gains. This rate also applies in respect of certain petroleum, mining or land...
- Tax Code (5 Jul 2011)
Michael Noonan: I do not have the figures sought by the Deputy to hand but, in overall terms, there has been a debate on who pays what rate of corporation tax across the European Union. If one takes the effective rate rather than the nominal rate, Ireland is positioned in the lower segment of mid-table. Our effective rate is 11.9% whereas our nominal rate is 12.5%. The two rates are very close because...
- Tax Code (5 Jul 2011)
Michael Noonan: As corporation tax is a tax on company profits, obviously costs are taken out before one calculates the base on which the 12.5% rate is applied.
- Tax Code (5 Jul 2011)
Michael Noonan: If it is a cost, it is a cost. It is a tax on profits. That is straightforward. The source is a survey carried out by one of the international accountancy firms. I do not have further information to hand but I will get it for the Deputy. The survey investigated nominal rates and effective rates throughout the European Union and we circulated the results widely through the diplomatic...
- Tax Code (5 Jul 2011)
Michael Noonan: More than 28,000 companies pay tax at the 12.5% rate but the Deputy wants to know how many pay smaller amounts. I do not have the precise figures to hand and I do not think anybody does. In general terms, there are few allowances but the tax is levied on profits. Obviously companies can deduct costs before the tax break arises. The one break of which I am aware was introduced in the...
- Tax Code (5 Jul 2011)
Michael Noonan: We have shared this information through our diplomatic system. The initial reaction of colleagues in Europe was surprise but they all accept it now. We got the information published in the leading French newspapers, including Les Echos, which is the French equivalent of the Financial Times, and I think it was also published in Le Monde. There has been a change in the French position. It...
- Tax Code (5 Jul 2011)
Michael Noonan: Discussions are focused on the possibility of getting an interest rate reduction. An argument about the rates has moved on to the base for quite some time now. The base is described along with the CCCTB, and the Commission has done a paper on it, which will eventually come before the Council of Ministers. It is before some technical committee at the moment which is making adjustments to...
- Moneylender Regulation (5 Jul 2011)
Michael Noonan: There is already a comprehensive licensing system in place for moneylenders. Moneylenders have to apply to the Central Bank annually to have their licences renewed. Section 93 of the Consumer Credit Act 1995, as amended, sets out the Central Bank's powers in regard to the grant or refusal of a moneylender's licence. The appropriate moneylending application form - new or renewal - must be...