Results 4,601-4,620 of 19,445 for speaker:Brian Cowen

Written Answers — Public Private Partnerships: Public Private Partnerships (18 Oct 2006)

Brian Cowen: The National Pensions Reserve Fund Commission controls and manages the National Pensions Reserve Fund with discretionary authority to determine and implement the Fund's investment strategy in accordance with the Fund investment policy set out in the National Pensions Reserve Fund Act 2000. This investment policy is based on a commercial investment mandate with the objective of securing the...

Written Answers — Tax Policy: Tax Policy (18 Oct 2006)

Brian Cowen: As the Deputy will appreciate, it is not the practice to comment in the lead up to the annual Budget and Finance Bill on the intention or otherwise to make changes in taxation.

Written Answers — Tax Policy: Tax Policy (18 Oct 2006)

Brian Cowen: In recognition of the need to tackle the issue of climate change and reduce our dependency on fossil fuels, this Government has introduced a number of tax reliefs aimed at promoting environmentally friendly vehicles, in addition to the promotion of alternative motor fuels. Firstly, a VRT relief for hybrid electric vehicles was introduced in January 2001. The purpose of the scheme — which...

Written Answers — Tax Collection: Tax Collection (18 Oct 2006)

Brian Cowen: I am advised by the Revenue Commissioners that the information furnished by them to the Comptroller and Auditor General and reflected in Chapter 2.2 of the Report shows that the write off of uncollectable tax debt at €143m in 2005 was a reduction of €29m on the €172m written off in 2004. The €143m write off in 2005 represents 0.36% of net receipts and was the lowest ratio of write off...

Written Answers — Fiscal Policy: Fiscal Policy (18 Oct 2006)

Brian Cowen: Budget 2006, published last December, gives current spending figures out to 2008, consistent with Government fiscal strategy. The Government's overriding budgetary framework is the Stability and Growth Pact and, within this, to maintain the firm and disciplined approach to budgetary policy that has served us so well. These spending increases are in line with this strategy. My Department's...

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (18 Oct 2006)

Brian Cowen: Under the National Pensions Reserve Fund Act 2000, the National Pensions Reserve Fund Commission controls and is responsible for the investment of the National Pensions Reserve Fund. It has discretionary authority to determine the Fund's investment strategy in accordance with the Fund's statutory investment policy of securing the optimal total financial return provided the level of risk to...

Written Answers — Performance Indicators: Performance Indicators (18 Oct 2006)

Brian Cowen: I presume that the Deputy is referring to my Department's Report of the Pilot Project on Resource Allocation, Business Planning and Performance Measurement of August, 2005. The conclusions and recommendations of this report informed Government thinking on reform of the Estimates and Budget process signalled in Budget 2005 and announced in Budget 2006. The report's recommendations, including...

Written Answers — Tax Collection: Tax Collection (18 Oct 2006)

Brian Cowen: The main consumption related taxes are VAT and Excise duty. Taken together these two tax-heads were forecast to account for €18.6 billion or 45 per cent of total tax revenues in 2006, a very significant proportion of total tax revenues. Construction impacts on a number of tax-heads, most notably capital taxes such as Stamp duty and Capital gains tax but also VAT and to a lesser extent...

Written Answers — Tax Code: Tax Code (18 Oct 2006)

Brian Cowen: The position is that homecare services provided directly by the Health Service Executive (HSE) do not generally come within the scope of VAT, as Public Bodies are not regarded as taxable persons. This means that they do not charge VAT on the services they provide and cannot recover VAT incurred on their input costs. The package of services aimed at older people, announced by the Minister for...

Written Answers — Tax Code: Tax Code (18 Oct 2006)

Brian Cowen: I am informed by the Revenue Commissioners that the latest available information in respect of taxpayers availing of the home carer's tax credit is for the income tax year 2003. The potential number of claimants for 2005 can only be provisionally estimated and is subject to revision. The number of PAYE taxpayers availing of the home carer's tax credit in 2005 is estimated to have been 69,300,...

Written Answers — Decentralisation Programme: Decentralisation Programme (18 Oct 2006)

Brian Cowen: I propose to take Questions Nos. 133, 157, 178 and 180 together. A progress report by the Decentralisation Implementation Group was submitted to me and published on 4th October last. The Group reported that implementation of the Decentralisation Programme is progressing satisfactorily. Over ten and a half thousand civil and public servants have applied to relocate under the Programme. The...

Written Answers — Tax Yield: Tax Yield (18 Oct 2006)

Brian Cowen: The assumptions underpinning the 2006 capital taxes forecasts were based on economic growth estimates in the Stability Programme Update which was published on Budget day, December 2005. These estimates included GNP, projected changes in the consumer price index and developments in the construction sector. The methodology for forecasting capital taxes in 2006 firstly required my Department to...

Written Answers — Decentralisation Programme: Decentralisation Programme (18 Oct 2006)

Brian Cowen: I am advised by the Public Appointments Service (PAS) and the Valuation Office that the number of people who have indicated their desire to decentralise to Youghal with these offices is 99 and 22 respectively. In accordance with the indicative timescale set out in the report from the Decentralisation Implementation Group both offices are working towards decentralising to Youghal in mid 2009....

Written Answers — Customs Service: Customs Service (18 Oct 2006)

Brian Cowen: The Customs Service of the Office of the Revenue Commissioners has primary responsibility for the prevention, detection, interception and seizure of controlled drugs at importation. It has particular responsibility for implementing import controls at points of entry to the State, specifically at ports and airports, including licensed airfields, and on the land frontier. The control of...

Written Answers — Tax Yield: Tax Yield (18 Oct 2006)

Brian Cowen: I am informed by the Revenue Commissioners that the additional revenue expected to accrue to the Exchequer arising from increases in gas and electricity prices relates to the VAT element of the increase. There is no excise duty charged on gas or electricity. The information to be furnished on VAT returns does not require the yield from particular sectors of trade to be identified. It is,...

Written Answers — Price Inflation: Price Inflation (18 Oct 2006)

Brian Cowen: Inflation, as measured by annual changes in the Consumer Price Index (CPI), was 4.0 per cent in September, down from 4.5 per cent in August. A large proportion of the increase of the rate of annual inflation is due to external factors which the Government have no control of, such as the recent rises in interest rates by the ECB. On the EU comparable measure of inflation, the Harmonised Index...

Written Answers — Tax Yield: Tax Yield (18 Oct 2006)

Brian Cowen: My Department currently expects that there will be a gain to Income tax in 2007 of approximately €600 million over 2006 arising from the discontinuance of the tax credit contribution to SSIA's and also the exit tax yield from maturing SSIA's. It should be noted that in 2007 the gain arising from the ending of the SSIA scheme will be broadly offset by the cash-flow loss from the ending of...

Written Answers — Tax Code: Tax Code (18 Oct 2006)

Brian Cowen: I presume that the Deputy is referring to the special property-based tax reliefs such as the area-based schemes and those covering various social facilities in areas such as health and education. In Budget 2006, following a major review of existing tax reliefs involving both internal reviews and the employment of outside consultants I announced the termination, subject to certain transitional...

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (18 Oct 2006)

Brian Cowen: Under the National Pensions Reserve Fund Act 2000, the National Pensions Reserve Fund Commission controls and is responsible for the investment of the National Pensions Reserve Fund. It has discretionary authority to determine and implement the Fund's investment strategy in accordance with the Fund's statutory investment policy of securing the optimal total financial return provided the...

Written Answers — Customer Overcharging: Customer Overcharging (18 Oct 2006)

Brian Cowen: The Financial Regulator published two reports, in July and December of 2004, focusing on the investigations into foreign exchange and other charging issues within the company referred to by the Deputy. A number of charging issues were identified during the investigation amounting to a total of EUR34.2 million, estimated in 2004 to be refunded to customers. As with all investigations, the...