Results 3,601-3,620 of 7,975 for speaker:Joe Higgins

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Property Tax: Discussion with Revenue (29 May 2013)

Joe Higgins: Okay. That is certainly-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Property Tax: Discussion with Revenue (29 May 2013)

Joe Higgins: May I ask one final question? Ms Feehily and the Revenue Commissioners have had huge exposure in and access to the media. Was there a meeting by the Revenue Commissioners with the national broadcaster or the national broadcasting organisations, TV and radio, to discuss the coverage? I understand the Revenue Commissioners is an agent of politicians, essentially, implementing a political...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Property Tax: Discussion with Revenue (29 May 2013)

Joe Higgins: That is fine. I would just like to point out, not to the witness but to the Government representatives, that while the Revenue Commissioners was given huge access for the purpose of collecting the tax, the opponents, who represent quite a huge tranche of opinion, were blacked out of the media completely until yesterday.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Property Tax: Discussion with Revenue (29 May 2013)

Joe Higgins: When one subtracts 160,000 local authority and voluntary housing association houses from the census figure, one gets 1.83 million. That should have been the figure used at the beginning of the process. To clarify a matter relating to the legislation, there are slightly fewer than 2 million homes. Is every single home owner and home obliged to be registered, even those who are exempt from...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Property Tax: Discussion with Revenue (29 May 2013)

Joe Higgins: There is a description in the legislation of a relevant residential property. The legislation states that, for the purposes of the Act, certain categories shall not be regarded as relevant residential properties. Are the owners of such properties obliged to register?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Property Tax: Discussion with Revenue (29 May 2013)

Joe Higgins: One of the categories that is not relevant in the legislation is homes that were bought this year. The guide from Revenue states that while these properties are exempt, the owners are still required to complete and submit a return. Will Ms Feehily clarify this matter?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Property Tax: Discussion with Revenue (29 May 2013)

Joe Higgins: I must move on for reasons of time. Does Ms Feehily know how many returns were sent to the wrong person and returned to Revenue with a statement from the recipient indicating that he or she is not the liable person?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Property Tax: Discussion with Revenue (29 May 2013)

Joe Higgins: Ms Feehily referred to voluntary tax compliance, a term she repeated a number of times. I put it to her that this is not a fair assessment of the position as a large number of people involuntarily registered with Revenue. There is a deep resentment at this tax, which is considered to be part of the bailout by ordinary people of bondholders and bankers and has created considerable hardship,...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Property Tax: Discussion with Revenue (29 May 2013)

Joe Higgins: I note from a newspaper report or a departmental circular that Ms Feehily stated, including to staff, that she was conscious of the difficulty many people will have in paying the charge. Will she bring this realisation into Revenue's enforcement procedures?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Property Tax: Discussion with Revenue (29 May 2013)

Joe Higgins: In the case of people who continue to protest at this tax, when will Revenue start to take their money involuntarily? Did Ms Feehily indicate the process would commence in July?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Property Tax: Discussion with Revenue (29 May 2013)

Joe Higgins: Is it correct that penalties are at the discretion of Revenue? How is a penalty administered? Must Revenue go to court to have a penalty imposed in addition to a tax that is due or does it simply decide a person owes a specific sum and can then move immediately to take it?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Property Tax: Discussion with Revenue (29 May 2013)

Joe Higgins: With regard to formal-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Property Tax: Discussion with Revenue (29 May 2013)

Joe Higgins: If there is still resistance, must Revenue go to court to impose a penalty or does the Revenue have such power without going to court?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Property Tax: Discussion with Revenue (29 May 2013)

Joe Higgins: I assume the court in question is the District Court.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Property Tax: Discussion with Revenue (29 May 2013)

Joe Higgins: Similarly, what is the position regarding deduction from a bank account?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Property Tax: Discussion with Revenue (29 May 2013)

Joe Higgins: I do not know whether Ms Feehily will consider this interaction as me being an engager.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Property Tax: Discussion with Revenue (29 May 2013)

Joe Higgins: We know Revenue does not comment on individual cases. This is the first time I have heard an authoritative person from Revenue agree the census figure of 1.99 million homes should have been the base line from the beginning. Revenue insisted the total number of homes was 1.66 million. Was this for propaganda purposes? As Ms Feehily is aware, there is a great deal of anger and resentment...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: National Internship Scheme Administration (29 May 2013)

Joe Higgins: 5. To ask the Minister for Social Protection following the Indecon report into the JobBridge Scheme which revealed that an estimated 240 of the 7,300 companies surveyed are availing of the scheme to displace paid jobs and only 15 companies have since been banned from participating in the scheme; the measures she is putting in place to identify and exclude other companies engaged in this...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: National Internship Scheme Administration (29 May 2013)

Joe Higgins: To provide an accurate assessment, one would be obliged to state that many of the 61% who secured employment were in jobs which had nothing to do with their internships. Only one in five secured employment with the companies with which they did their internships. Of course, a large number of people did not complete their internships in the first instance. Indecon's survey reveals that 3%...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: National Internship Scheme Administration (29 May 2013)

Joe Higgins: There is widespread anecdotal evidence - from people who participated on this scheme and those who have examined some of the so-called internships on offer - that JobBridge is being highly abused as a means of procuring cheap labour. Furthermore, 29% of the employers surveyed said that, even if they had not taken on interns, it was highly or fairly likely that they would have taken on...