Results 48,941-48,960 of 49,836 for speaker:Stephen Donnelly

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Finance Bill 2013: Committee Stage (6 Mar 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: That is correct. The Minister is sticking to this year while I am sticking to what it says in the legislation, which is €750.

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Finance Bill 2013: Committee Stage (6 Mar 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: Then the Minister does not believe in the basic law of supply and demand.

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Finance Bill 2013: Committee Stage (6 Mar 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: It will go through anyway so the debate is academic. We are not talking about €50, we are talking about €150 in the context of raising fees. For the family, it is not €150 but €750. When one combines what the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Quinn, is doing and this measure, if the Minister does not believe €150 at the margin changes behaviour,...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Finance Bill 2013: Committee Stage (6 Mar 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: Finally, by 2015 it will amount to €150 per year and this amounts to €600 over four years. The cost of this to the parent, or whoever is funding it, in 2015 will be €600. Yesterday, I referred to a garda who did not have enough money to buy himself a decent dinner and he was eating a cheese toastie. I am sure most parents will do whatever they can to find the...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Finance Bill 2013: Committee Stage (6 Mar 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: Can the Minister walk us through the €50?

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Finance Bill 2013: Committee Stage (6 Mar 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: I seek clarification. The fee is being increased by €250 in one year. Obviously it is being increased by €500 as the legislation refers specifically to two increases of €250.

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Finance Bill 2013: Committee Stage (6 Mar 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: No, the legislation specifically shows €2,500 up to €3,000.

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Finance Bill 2013: Committee Stage (6 Mar 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: I understand. Does it go up to €3,000?

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Finance Bill 2013: Committee Stage (6 Mar 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: Exactly so it is an increase of €750 in fees.

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Finance Bill 2013: Committee Stage (6 Mar 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: Obviously it is not just for this year. Multiple years have been outlined in the legislation so that means €750. Can the Minister confirm that the €750-----

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Finance Bill 2013: Committee Stage (6 Mar 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: I thank the Minister for his answer. I disagree that he is not the policy maker. He is obviously not the policymaker in respect of education fees but he is the policymaker on tax so it is his decision to match the fees with taxes. That is not the decision of the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Quinn.

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Finance Bill 2013: Committee Stage (6 Mar 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: As a member of the Select Sub-Committee on Finance, I believe it is the wrong way to gather the €9 million. I am fully aware of what the sum is worth and I do not think making education more expensive is a good way to recoup €9 million. Education has elements of public good and private good and there is a clear policy rationale for tax incentives in education, just as there is...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Finance Bill 2013: Committee Stage (6 Mar 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: My understanding of section 10 is that it will lower the tax relief available for third level fees on a cumulative level over the next number of years. This would be a retrograde step. I would be interested to know how much money the Exchequer will derive from this measure. This measure must be viewed in the context of what is happening for third level students or prospective third level...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Finance Bill 2013: Committee Stage (6 Mar 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: On the Minister's substantive point in earlier speeches, I am broadly sympathetic to the idea that household net income should not increase during maternity leave. I would broadly support legislation which capped net income at its existing level. I have difficulty with two issues that arise. For some single income and many dual income households this will cost €2,700 in additional...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Finance Bill 2013: Committee Stage (6 Mar 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: I ask for clarification. Is it the idea that maternity benefit will be taxed at the marginal rate? If so, will it include PRSI and the universal social charge? Will someone lose 51% of the payment if she is being taxed at the marginal rate, or how does the Minister see this playing out in terms of the amount the State pays out in maternity cover?

Finance (Local Property Tax) (Amendment) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (Resumed) and Remaining Stages (5 Mar 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: One of the most contentious issues is that people in areas like Dublin and Wicklow will pay several times more than people in the Minister's own constituency. In his answer to questions on that issue, on which I have tabled amendments, the Minister said the reason those people pay more is because the higher value of the house is a function of higher local services. The Minister and I both...

Finance (Local Property Tax) (Amendment) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (Resumed) and Remaining Stages (5 Mar 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: Sure.

Finance (Local Property Tax) (Amendment) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (Resumed) and Remaining Stages (5 Mar 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: Local authorities do not provide transport.

Finance (Local Property Tax) (Amendment) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (Resumed) and Remaining Stages (5 Mar 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: My first point concerns the process. Members of the Oireachtas Select Sub-Committee on Finance have three days, from morning to night, dealing with the Finance Bill. If the Government wanted to give this Bill substantial time at that select sub-committee, which includes Opposition Members and many excellent Government Members, it could be done. This is stifling parliamentary debate. The...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Outdoor Education Centres (5 Mar 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: To ask the Minister for Education and Skills in relation to the directors of vocational education committee outdoor education centres, and a February 2009 Labour Court recommendation in relation to directors of VEC outdoor education centres, which his Department agreed it would accept as binding, the reason his Department has refused to implement the recommendation, originally citing the...