Results 4,701-4,720 of 27,019 for speaker:Michael Noonan

Financial Services Regulation (16 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue. The issue the House is debating is whether a financial service provider which has been found by the Financial Services Ombudsman to have acted in an unfair manner should be named. This issue is the subject of discussions between the Financial Services Ombudsman and the Department of Finance. Before I talk about these discussions I would...

Financial Services Regulation (16 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: On 5 January 2012 the Financial Services Ombudsman wrote to my Department. He referred to several of the submissions in which concern was expressed about how information on the complaints record of financial service providers might be presented. Assurances were sought that the information would be presented in a manner that was verifiable, robust, properly contextualised and not misleading....

Written Answers — Financial Services Regulation: Financial Services Regulation (16 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: The matter raised by the Deputy is a regulatory matter which does not fall within my remit as Minister for Finance. I am advised by the Central Bank that the matter referred to by the Deputy dates back to 1995 when credit unions were under the responsibility of the Registrar of Friendly Societies and not the Central Bank of Ireland. The Central Bank further advises that the matters raised...

Written Answers — Mortgage Repayments: Mortgage Repayments (16 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 63 and 70 together. I am conscious of the difficult situation that the residents of Priory Hall find themselves in. The lending institutions in Ireland, including those in which the State has a significant shareholding, are independent commercial entities. A mortgage agreement is a contract which cannot be altered without the consent of the parties. I, as...

Written Answers — Tax Reliefs: Tax Reliefs (16 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: I am informed by the Revenue Commissioners that the cost to the Exchequer of income tax relief for the rent a room scheme for the years 2007, 2008 and 2009, the latest year for which the necessary detailed statistical information is available, is as follows: Tax Year Cost €m 2007 4.7 2008 5.6 2009 5.6

Written Answers — Tax Code: Tax Code (16 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: I am advised by the Revenue Commissioners that income from patent royalties is normally received in the form of a license fee from licensing out the patent and that, for companies, such income is generally taxed at the higher corporation tax rate of 25%, while resident individual taxpayers are liable to tax at their marginal rate of tax in respect of such income. However, it is possible to...

Written Answers — Tax Code: Tax Code (16 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: The Office of the Revenue Commissioners is the main source of statistics and data on tax incentives and expenditure. They provide costs of tax credits, allowances and reliefs in their Annual Statistical Reports. The most recent figures related to tax expenditures appear in the 2009 report, which sets out the total identifiable costs to the Exchequer of all income tax and corporation tax...

Written Answers — Tax Code: Tax Code (16 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: There is currently no tax based on sulphur dioxide or nitrogen oxide emissions. The Deputy may wish to note that a carbon tax was introduced in respect of fossil fuels and was increased from €15 per tonne to €20 per tonne with effect from 7 December 2011 in respect of auto-fuels and from 1 May 2012 in respect of non-auto mineral oils and natural gas. The carbon tax in respect of solid...

Written Answers — Tax Reliefs: Tax Reliefs (16 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: The position is as I stated in my Budget day speech, that the Government has now fulfilled its commitment contained in the Programme for Government to increase the rate of mortgage interest relief to 30 per cent for first-time buyers who took out their first mortgage in the period 2004 to 2008. I have sought to be as flexible as possible within the constraints pertaining. Under the current...

Written Answers — Tax Reliefs: Tax Reliefs (16 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: The Deputy will be aware that the number one priority of the Government is jobs. The Special Assignee Relief Programme (SARP) is designed to help attract key individuals to the Irish based operations of their employers. It is hoped that additional foreign direct investment and additional jobs will result from the introduction of SARP. In addition to SARP, other measures introduced in...

Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (16 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: In the time allowed it is not possible to provide a detailed response to the Deputy. However, details in respect of my Department are outlined as follows: Department Band Number of Employees D/FIN 0-10K 59 D/FIN 10-20K 13 D/FIN 20-30K 45 D/FIN 30-40K 67 D/FIN 40-50K 36 D/FIN 50-60K 38 D/FIN 60-70K 11 D/FIN 70-80K 15 D/FIN 80-90K 38 D/FIN 90-100K 9 D/FIN 100-115K 7 D/FIN...

Written Answers — Tax Code: Tax Code (16 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: The Deputy will be aware that Ireland has the highest prices and excise duty levels for cigarettes in the EU and already applies a high specific duty element and a low ad valorum element in setting its excise duty for cigarettes relative to other Member States. However the question of re-balancing the excise tax structure will be examined in the context of the 2012 Finance Bill.

Written Answers — Tax Reliefs: Tax Reliefs (16 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: The position is as I stated in my Budget day speech, that the Government has now fulfilled its commitment contained in the Programme for Government to increase the rate of Mortgage Interest Relief to 30 per cent for first-time buyers who took out their first mortgage in the period 2004 to 2008. I have sought to be as flexible as possible within the constraints pertaining. The increased rate...

Written Answers — Illicit Trade in Tobacco: Illicit Trade in Tobacco (21 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 140, 141 and 155 together. I am informed by the Revenue Commissioners that a survey commissioned by Revenue and the Office of Tobacco Control in 2009 estimated that 20% of cigarettes consumed in the State had not been taxed in this jurisdiction. This figure was further broken down as 14% illicit product and 6% legally imported by passengers arriving into the...

Written Answers — EU Directives: EU Directives (21 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: The EU Regulation to which the Deputy refers is "Regulation (EU) No 1175/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 November 2011 amending Council Regulation (EC) No 1466/97 on the strengthening of the surveillance of budgetary positions and the surveillance and coordination of economic policies". This Regulation is one of the five EU Regulations and one EU Directive that go to...

Written Answers — Fiscal Policy: Fiscal Policy (21 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: The structural deficit refers to the general government deficit adjusted for the economic cycle and one-off / temporary measures. Unlike the headline deficit, the structural deficit cannot be measured directly and must be estimated. This is difficult to do with any degree of accuracy, especially in a small open economy such as Ireland's, as acknowledged by the Fiscal Council in its recent...

Written Answers — Motor Imports: Motor Imports (21 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: I am advised by the Revenue Commissioners that a new vehicle registration computer system was introduced in December 2011. Because of budgetary constraints, it was not possible to carry forward all the registration details of vehicles registered in the previous 19 years to the new system. Accordingly, a simplified model that did not require the details of the registration number assigned to...

Written Answers — Tax Clearance Certificates: Tax Clearance Certificates (21 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: I am informed by the Revenue Commissioners that following receipt of updated pension figures from the Department of Social Protection, it transpires that the person in question is in receipt of a Department of Social Protection Old Age Pension with an Increase for a Qualified Adult. In the circumstances the person concerned is entitled to one PAYE Tax Credit in respect of the pension. He is...

Written Answers — Tax Clearance Certificates: Tax Clearance Certificates (21 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: I am advised by the Revenue Commissioners that a claim for medical expenses of €5,384 was received from the person named for 2009 and a net refund of €177.65 issued on 14th December 2011, €88.99 to the person named and €88.66 to his spouse. In processing the refund, an apparent under deduction of PAYE for 2009 of €897.74 came to light from the P35 forms submitted by the employers. A...

Written Answers — Tax Collection: Tax Collection (21 Feb 2012)

Michael Noonan: I have been advised by the Revenue Commissioners that they have written to the person concerned requesting the details necessary to establish if he is entitled to a refund of income tax.