Results 32,301-32,320 of 32,583 for speaker:Richard Bruton

Written Answers — Consumer Expenditure: Consumer Expenditure (8 Feb 2005)

Richard Bruton: Question 167: To ask the Taoiseach his estimate of the number of persons in dental practice and the value of private consumer spending on their services. [3512/05]

Written Answers — Consumer Expenditure: Consumer Expenditure (8 Feb 2005)

Richard Bruton: Question 168: To ask the Taoiseach his estimate of the number of persons in medical practice and the value of private consumer spending on their services. [3513/05]

Written Answers — Consumer Expenditure: Consumer Expenditure (8 Feb 2005)

Richard Bruton: Question 169: To ask the Taoiseach his estimate of private consumer spending on third level education. [3514/05]

Written Answers — Consumer Expenditure: Consumer Expenditure (8 Feb 2005)

Richard Bruton: Question 170: To ask the Taoiseach his estimate of private consumer spending on private rented residential accommodation. [3515/05]

Written Answers — Economic Statistics: Economic Statistics (8 Feb 2005)

Richard Bruton: Question 171: To ask the Taoiseach if he will report on the distribution of women of working age by economic activity, indicating those at work, those engaged in homecaring, those in education and so on. [3516/05]

Written Answers — Health Insurance Companies: Health Insurance Companies (8 Feb 2005)

Richard Bruton: Question 200: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children the value of premia paid to and expenditure by health insurance companies. [3517/05]

Written Answers — Third Level Education: Third Level Education (8 Feb 2005)

Richard Bruton: Question 478: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the estimated number of students attending private third level institutes of education; and the nature of the relationship which these colleges have with her Department. [3510/05]

Written Answers — Private Rented Accommodation: Private Rented Accommodation (8 Feb 2005)

Richard Bruton: Question 523: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the number of units of private rented accommodation in use or available for use; and the number of these which are registered with the appropriate authority as required by law. [3511/05]

Finance Bill 2005: Second Stage. (8 Feb 2005)

Richard Bruton: I congratulate the Minister on the presentation of his first Finance Bill. We are starting a process which will probably run to 24 hours of solid debating about the Government's tax policy. My main criticism is that we are devoting this huge block of time to a debate about what is essentially tinkering at the edges of our tax structure, while we ignore the elephant in the corner, namely, the...

Finance Bill 2005: Second Stage. (8 Feb 2005)

Richard Bruton: Since 2002? Very little.

Finance Bill 2005: Second Stage. (8 Feb 2005)

Richard Bruton: It has increased by approximately 8%.

Finance Bill 2005: Second Stage. (8 Feb 2005)

Richard Bruton: Between 2002 and 2004?

Finance Bill 2005: Second Stage. (8 Feb 2005)

Richard Bruton: In 1997.

Finance Bill 2005: Second Stage. (8 Feb 2005)

Richard Bruton: The period since the general election in 2002 has not been a period of bonanza. If one examines the figures, it is clear that the tax take has increased dramatically relative to income in that period. The increase may not be clear on the income tax side because there were increases in VAT, stealth taxes and local authority charges such as bin charges. The increases may have taken place...

Finance Bill 2005: Second Stage. (8 Feb 2005)

Richard Bruton: I have seen the figures quoted by the Minister.

Finance Bill 2005: Second Stage. (8 Feb 2005)

Richard Bruton: He has said that a person on the average industrial wage pays €300 less tax than he or she paid in 1997. I am sure the Minister is right, but one should consider the extra VAT, vehicle registration tax, stamp duty, bin taxes, utility development charges and utility bills being paid by that person.

Finance Bill 2005: Second Stage. (8 Feb 2005)

Richard Bruton: Yes.

Finance Bill 2005: Second Stage. (8 Feb 2005)

Richard Bruton: The pretence that tax is decreasing can be sustained only by looking selectively at income tax. The Minister is not willing to examine in the same way the VAT and VRT, for example, being paid by the average family.

Finance Bill 2005: Second Stage. (8 Feb 2005)

Richard Bruton: He will not examine all the other taxes that make up the bulk of what people pay. It is a selective view. If one examines the aggregate tax take, one will find that it has increased by €11 billion since 2002. It has increased by that amount in just three years.

Finance Bill 2005: Second Stage. (8 Feb 2005)

Richard Bruton: I do.