Results 3,781-3,800 of 7,412 for speaker:Neasa Hourigan
- Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (Resumed) (16 Nov 2022)
Neasa Hourigan: We must conclude. We have reached the end of the time allocated for this first session. I thank the witnesses for attending and for taking the time to look at the report, which, I believe, is quite an important one for us. It will be instructive in the next few years in terms of developing the tax and welfare policies in this country. I propose that we suspend proceedings in order to...
- Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (Resumed) (16 Nov 2022)
Neasa Hourigan: I welcome Ms Anne Gunnell and Mr. Brian Brennan from the Irish Tax Institute. I thank them for waiting for the division to conclude. It is appreciated. Before we begin I must explain some limitations to parliamentary privilege and the practice of the Houses as regards references witnesses may make to other persons in their evidence. The evidence of witnesses physically present or who...
- Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (Resumed) (16 Nov 2022)
Neasa Hourigan: That is fine.
- Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (Resumed) (16 Nov 2022)
Neasa Hourigan: I thank the witnesses for their presentation. I will open the floor to questions. Deputy Boyd Barrett is up first.
- Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (Resumed) (16 Nov 2022)
Neasa Hourigan: I want to return to the issue of VAT. In their statement the witnesses spoke about VAT and stated that new VAT rules also provide for the phasing out of preferential treatment for environmentally harmful goods. In the past the committee has spoken about the greening of VAT and how it might be possible. I would like to hear more about this. The witnesses also spoke about a review of the...
- Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (Resumed) (16 Nov 2022)
Neasa Hourigan: This is a very broad definition. I have been speaking to the Department of Finance about repair and rental issues. Being able to repair something and being able to rent something is a green initiative, even though that is not necessarily obvious. The definition of that constitutes the greening of VAT is quite broad. I know there is a list. Phasing out preferential treatment for fossil...
- Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (Resumed) (16 Nov 2022)
Neasa Hourigan: Are we out of line with the EU?
- Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (Resumed) (16 Nov 2022)
Neasa Hourigan: Are we out of line by far?
- Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (Resumed) (16 Nov 2022)
Neasa Hourigan: Are we the most by 0.1% or by 30%? I must look into this.
- Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (Resumed) (16 Nov 2022)
Neasa Hourigan: Who would the witnesses identify as most appropriate? Obviously, there is the Department of Finance. Who is it at EU level? It is a science in itself to identify the most progressive ways to do this. VAT is an incredibly complex area. Do we have a dearth of data in this country on the impacts? Something that comes up over and over at the committee is that sometimes it is hard to...
- Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (Resumed) (16 Nov 2022)
Neasa Hourigan: I call Deputy Durkan who is also attending the meeting of the finance committee.
- Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (Resumed) (16 Nov 2022)
Neasa Hourigan: Do you wish to respond to some of the points Deputy Durkan raised?
- Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (Resumed) (16 Nov 2022)
Neasa Hourigan: Could we return to site value tax? We have a policy on site value tax in my party on which I worked. Economists tend to like the look of it and it is very hard to implement. Will you say a little more about her concerns with regard to such a tax. We heard in the session last week there was a general feeling that the system of commercial rates in Ireland has broken down somewhat and does...
- Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (Resumed) (16 Nov 2022)
Neasa Hourigan: Commercial rates are levied on the tenant at present, in effect. This would not be the same. Will that throw up problems or is it a more effective method of taxation?
- Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (Resumed) (16 Nov 2022)
Neasa Hourigan: Working out how a site value tax might operate is labyrinthine. It was probably not the right forum to do so but last week I said that doing so would need an incredibly robust valuation system. We may be a little bit far away from such a system at present.
- Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (Resumed) (16 Nov 2022)
Neasa Hourigan: There are a couple of suggetions in the Commission on Taxation and Welfare report. I did not put it to the OECD because I suspect it is so used to some of these taxes, it is a given one would implement them. However, I suspect it would be a bit more difficult in this country. Does Ms Gunnell take a view on accommodation tax for visitors to the country?
- Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (Resumed) (16 Nov 2022)
Neasa Hourigan: Have you ever done any research on it?
- Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (Resumed) (16 Nov 2022)
Neasa Hourigan: I am aware that almost every capital city in the EU has some version of a tourist tax where Dublin does not. I know it is very difficult for local authorities to levy their own taxes but it seems Dublin City Council which has a €50 million hole in its budget might think an accommodation tax sounded pretty good.
- Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (Resumed) (16 Nov 2022)
Neasa Hourigan: Do you feel that whatever favourable VAT rates might be in place would interact and perhaps dampen the tourism sector?
- Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (Resumed) (16 Nov 2022)
Neasa Hourigan: The tourist industry will come before us which may have some opinions on that. I am sure it will. We have talked a little bit about site value tax and inheritance tax. We have not talked too much today about agricultural land and rezoning more specifically. We talked about it last week and a little bit about the removal in 2014 of the windfall tax for rezoning. Do you have an opinion on it?