Results 6,561-6,580 of 33,118 for speaker:Paschal Donohoe

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Universal Social Charge (22 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: The USC was designed and incorporated into the Irish taxation system in 2011 to replace two other charges, namely the Health and Income Levies. Its primary purpose was to widen the tax base and to provide a steady income to the Exchequer to provide funding for public services. The USC is an individualised tax, meaning that a person’s liability to the tax is determined on the basis...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Covid-19 Pandemic Supports (22 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: In relation to Covid-19 support schemes under the aegis of my Department, I am advised by Revenue that  the total cost of the Covid Restrictions Support Scheme (CRSS) as of 17 February is €727m which has been paid in  respect of 25,600 premises. In terms of the Employment Wage Subsidy Scheme (EWSS), currently 24,900 employers are registered with Revenue...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Tax Reliefs (22 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: As stated in my reply to the Deputy on 16 December last, as the Special Assignee Relief Programme (SARP) sunsets this year, there will be an opportunity for review. Any decisions on the future of SARP arising from this review will be taken in the context of the Budget 2023 and Finance Bill 2022 processes. With regard to the total cost to the Exchequer of...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Credit Unions (22 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: The Programme for Government includes a number of commitments in relation to the credit union sector.  Work on the Review of the Policy Framework is well advanced. We intend to discuss proposals emanating from the Review with representative bodies in the next few weeks. As part of the Review of the Policy Framework, Minister of State Fleming has...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Departmental Data (22 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: In accordance with the Irish Collective Asset-management Vehicle ('ICAV') Act 2015, the Central Bank of Ireland is the registration body for ICAVs.  The Central Bank  of Ireland is also the authorisation body for Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs) and Undertakings for Collective Investment in Transferable Securities (UCITS). ICAVs must be registered as ICAVs and authorised as AIFs...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Revenue Commissioners (22 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: I propose to take Questions Nos. 252 and 253 together. Revenue has advised me that over 820,000 PAYE taxpayers have filed income tax returns for 2020 and approximately 480,000 have done so for 2021. It is not possible to definitively confirm the number of PAYE taxpayers who have yet to file their returns for 2021 as in many cases they pay the correct tax throughout the year and are not...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Housing Schemes (22 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: I am advised by Revenue that there were 26,025 Help-to-Buy (HTB) applications made in 2021.   Applications for HTB may be made on a provisional basis as first time buyers will want to have certainty as to their entitlements in advance of commencing the purchase of a property. An application will only progress to the final ‘claim’ stage when the applicant decides to purchase...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Covid-19 Pandemic (22 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: By the third quarter last year, both output and employment had exceeded pre-pandemic levels, a remarkable outcome that speaks to the success of the Government’s economic policies, which protected incomes, jobs and businesses. It is important to note however that the Covid-19 shock has had a disproportionate and negative impact on certain sectors, in particular on labor-intensive...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Mortgage Interest Rates (22 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: I am aware that the general level of new lending interest rates in Ireland are higher than is the case in many other European countries. However, the price lenders charge for their loans is a commercial matter for individual lenders.  As Minister for Finance I cannot determine the lending policies of individual banks including the interest rates they charge for loans including mortgages,...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Tax Credits (22 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: As the Deputy will be aware, Budget 2022 included a significant tax package amounting to a cost of €520 million.    This included a substantial income tax package comprising of an increase of €50 in each of the main tax credits – personal tax credit, employee tax credit and the earned income credit – from €1,650 to €1,700.  An...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Tax Reliefs (22 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: The Department of Finance does not provide any grants for the purchase of a vehicle but instead administers the Disabled Drivers and Disabled Passengers (Tax Concessions) Scheme which provides relief from VAT and VRT (up to a certain limit) on the purchase of an adapted car for transport of a person with specific severe and permanent physical disabilities, payment of a Fuel Grant, and an...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Covid-19 Pandemic Supports (22 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: The Government have stated on many occasions that there will be no cliff edge to supports for employers but we have also been clear that the Employee Wage Subsidy Scheme (EWSS) and COVID Restrictions Support Scheme (CRSS) cannot run indefinitely, nor is it sustainable to continue for a prolonged period of time given the very substantial costs to the Exchequer. In relation to EWSS the...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Financial Services (22 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: As the Deputy is aware, the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman (FSPO) is independent in the performance of her statutory functions and I have no role in the day to day workings of the office or in the decisions which she takes. The FSPO has informed me that every complaint received by it is assessed and investigated in detail. Where a complaint closes in Registration and...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Financial Services (22 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: As the Deputy is aware, the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman (FSPO) is independent in the performance of her statutory functions and I have no role in the day to day workings of the office or in the decisions which she takes. The FSPO has informed me that it can investigate complaints made about the conduct of financial service providers and pension providers, only if such...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Financial Services (22 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: As the Deputy is aware, the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman (FSPO) is independent in the performance of her statutory functions and I have no role in the day to day workings of the office or in the decisions which she takes. The FSPO has informed me that where a complaint is made to the FSPO concerning a joint account or a joint policy, the FSPO must recognise that all...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Financial Services (22 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: As the Deputy is aware, the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman (FSPO) is independent in the performance of her statutory functions and I have no role in the day to day workings of the office or in the decisions which she takes. The FSPO’s predecessor, the Financial Services Ombudsman Bureau, started receiving tracker mortgage rate complaints in 2009, and these...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Financial Services (22 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: As the Deputy is aware, the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman (FSPO) is independent in the performance of her statutory functions and I have no role in the day to day workings of the office or in the decisions which she takes. The FSPO has informed me that in accordance with the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman Act 2017 (‘the Act’), the Financial...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Financial Services (22 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: As the Deputy is aware, the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman (FSPO) is independent in the performance of her statutory functions and I have no role in the day to day workings of the office or in the decisions which she takes. In December 2018, the FSPO submitted a Workforce Plan 2019-2023 to me and I approved the recruitment of an additional 35 staff. This basis...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Financial Services (22 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: As the Deputy is aware, the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman (FSPO) is independent in the performance of her statutory functions and I have no role in the day to day workings of the office or in the decisions which she takes. As the FSPO is a statutory complaints handling body its functions require the ongoing provision of legal services. The FSPO has informed me that...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Revenue Commissioners (22 Feb 2022)

Paschal Donohoe: I propose to take Questions Nos. 268 and 274 together. I am advised by Revenue that its public offices, excluding ports, airports and trade facilitation stations remain closed until further notice. Throughout the pandemic, Revenue has continued to provide a full range of online services for taxpayers to manage their tax affairs, which for the most part removes any requirement to...