Results 13,341-13,360 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar
- Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (10 Oct 2018)
Leo Varadkar: Tax expenditures are there for a reason. Sometimes they are a good idea and sometimes they are a bad idea and they have to be regularly reviewed. They have to be justifiable. One of the most expensive tax expenditures we have is mortgage interest relief. We allow people to offset some of their income tax against the cost of their mortgage. That was introduced to promote home ownership...
- Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (10 Oct 2018)
Leo Varadkar: I do not have any plans to legislate on this but I imagine that the Department of Finance is able to provide that information to the Deputy by means of a parliamentary question. I assume the Department of Finance has-----
- Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (10 Oct 2018)
Leo Varadkar: -----estimates as to what the tax foregone is from any particular tax expenditure or tax incentive.
- Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (10 Oct 2018)
Leo Varadkar: The Commission on Taxation examined all of them and had a detailed view on each of them although that was a number of years ago.
- Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (10 Oct 2018)
Leo Varadkar: That can be done in respect of sunset clauses. When we reduced VAT for the tourism and hospitality sector, we indicated that it would only last for three years, although that was not written into the law. When there is a sunset clause, however, we always come under pressure to extend it anyway. I am not sure how effective they are. I would not have a sunset clause when it comes to...
- Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (10 Oct 2018)
Leo Varadkar: I would be concerned if that was the type of policy that Deputy Broughan was putting forward-----
- Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (10 Oct 2018)
Leo Varadkar: -----and a threat would be put in law that at a certain point we are going to start taxing people's child benefit.
- Financial Resolutions 2019 - Financial Resolution No. 4: General (Resumed) (10 Oct 2018)
Leo Varadkar: Is it 40 minutes?
- Financial Resolutions 2019 - Financial Resolution No. 4: General (Resumed) (10 Oct 2018)
Leo Varadkar: I imagine I will not take that long. Our country’s second Minister for Finance believed that the purpose of Government was to allow the greatest freedom for all - what he called "the greatest possibilities for the good of all". Yesterday, that message was at the heart of budget 2019 presented by the current Minister for Finance, Deputy Pascal Donohoe. It was a budget he summarised...
- Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (10 Oct 2018)
Leo Varadkar: We would like to agree on an all-party basis, through the Joint Committee on Climate Action, a target price for carbon for 2030 which would probably be €80 per tonne, but I do not want to set it here, and the trajectory by which we will get to that point. I would very much like that to be agreed on an all-party basis. It is not dissimilar to introducing water charges. When people...
- Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (10 Oct 2018)
Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue, which is an ongoing one. The State offers accommodation to those who present in Ireland applying for international protection as asylum seekers. One of the centres in the State, the Clondalkin Towers Hotel, wrote recently to the Reception and Integration Agency, RIA, an agency of the Department of Justice and Equality, advising it that it...
- Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (10 Oct 2018)
Leo Varadkar: I do not have answers to all those questions but the Minister of State at the Department of Justice and Equality, Deputy Stanton, is here and I imagine he will be able to provide more detailed answers later. Every effort is being made to ensure that accommodation is secured for the people affected. I do not think anybody would like to see so many people losing their accommodation so...
- Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (10 Oct 2018)
Leo Varadkar: The Deputy is speaking to a document which I have not seen. If he would like to pass it on to me, I would be happy to take a look at it and perhaps give him-----
- Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (10 Oct 2018)
Leo Varadkar: I am glad the Deputy has now told us which document he is referring to.
- Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (10 Oct 2018)
Leo Varadkar: Yes but it is only this second the Deputy has told me which document he is referring to. To answer the Deputy's question-----
- Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (10 Oct 2018)
Leo Varadkar: To answer the Deputy's question, ISIF is different from the rainy day fund. ISIF is tied up in certain types of investments, sometimes land, long-term bonds or businesses. We wanted the rainy day fund to have something more liquid which can be deployed more quickly if we need to do so.
- Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (10 Oct 2018)
Leo Varadkar: I support carbon taxes as a concept. In fact I support them as more than a concept. I was a member of the Government in 2013 that introduced and legislated for carbon taxes in Ireland, something which, interestingly enough, was opposed by people who are now calling for it. We took a decision as a Government, for a particular reason, not to increase the carbon tax in this budget. It is...
- Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (10 Oct 2018)
Leo Varadkar: The Sinn Féin plan was to provide income tax relief for people who are renting and only people who are renting. We decided-----
- Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (10 Oct 2018)
Leo Varadkar: -----on a different approach. We decided to provide income tax relief and USC reductions for everyone who is working in our society, well over 1 million people-----
- Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (10 Oct 2018)
Leo Varadkar: -----because many people are struggling to pay the rent. There are, however, also people struggling to pay the mortgage, struggling to pay for childcare and struggling to raise a deposit to buy a home. Sinn Féin-----