Results 18,141-18,160 of 32,864 for speaker:Paschal Donohoe

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Public Procurement Contracts Data (2 Oct 2018)

Paschal Donohoe: I propose to take Questions Nos. 199 and 201 together. I should point out that my Department is responsible for public procurement policy aimed at ensuring the sustainable delivery of much needed public services while also encouraging and supporting SME participation in these business opportunities. This approach is beneficial for the State because it nurtures competition which ensures...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Public Relations Contracts Data (2 Oct 2018)

Paschal Donohoe: Public sector buyers advertise contracts for supplies and services with an estimated value of €25,000 (exclusive of VAT) and upwards and contracts for works and works related services with an estimated value of at €50,000 (exclusive of VAT) on eTenders, the Government webportal. Therefore, activity below these levels is not captured. The Office of Government Procurement (OGP)...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Office of Public Works Projects (2 Oct 2018)

Paschal Donohoe: The Office of Public Works (OPW) is responsible for the maintenance of Arterial Drainage Schemes and catchment drainage schemes designated under the Arterial Drainage Acts of 1945 and 1995. The OPW completes regular maintenance of a channel entering and leaving the lake in question to meet its statutory obligations as part of an Arterial Drainage Scheme. As the lake itself does not form...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Departmental Expenditure (2 Oct 2018)

Paschal Donohoe: The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform did not have a stand at the National Ploughing Championship 2018. However my Department, as the Government Department with responsibility for the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), had one member of staff deployed in the European Union Commission tent for two days. The total expenses, which included travel by public transport, admittance...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Mortgage Lending (27 Sep 2018)

Paschal Donohoe: The Central Bank has advised that when an individual(s) applies for a mortgage loan to buy a home, the individual(s) will generally be required to take out mortgage protection insurance. This is a particular type of life assurance taken out for the term of the mortgage and is designed to pay an amount equal to the outstanding principal amount of the mortgage on the death of the borrower or...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Revenue Commissioners (27 Sep 2018)

Paschal Donohoe: I am advised by Revenue that it has significantly enhanced its overall customer support infrastructure in recent years to assist taxpayers in managing their tax affairs in an environment that is both efficient and convenient. In particular, the provision of enhanced online and telephone services has resulted in very significantly reduced demand for the traditional ‘walk-in’...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Tax Reliefs Availability (27 Sep 2018)

Paschal Donohoe: There are a range of tax measures designed directly or indirectly to encourage employers to take on new employees. These include the following: Key Employee Engagement Programme (KEEP): The policy objective of KEEP is to assist small to medium size businesses in competing with larger companies when attempting to attract and retain key employees. Share options can provide key employees...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Budget Submissions (27 Sep 2018)

Paschal Donohoe: I propose to take Questions Nos. 69 and 77 together. As the Deputy will be aware, it is a longstanding practice of the Minister for Finance not to comment, in advance of the Budget, on any tax matters that might be the subject of Budget decisions.

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Sale of State Assets (27 Sep 2018)

Paschal Donohoe: There is an obligation under Article 11 of the Constitution to pay moneys due to the State in to the Central Fund unless there is a law stating that they can be paid somewhere else. The special dividends related to the sale of Bord Gáis can be divided into two categories: (i) As the Deputy will be aware from a number of previous PQ responses to him on this issue, the...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: VAT Rate Reductions (27 Sep 2018)

Paschal Donohoe: I propose to take Questions Nos. 71, 74 and 75 together. I am advised by the Revenue Commissioners that the VAT rating of goods and services is subject to EU VAT law, with which Irish VAT law must comply. In accordance with the EU VAT Directive the standard rate of VAT, currently 23%, applies to the supply of digital school books. The VAT Directive also provides that Member States...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Illegal Fuel Sales (27 Sep 2018)

Paschal Donohoe: As I, and my predecessor, have pointed out before, the collection of solid fuel carbon tax is heavily reliant on the regulatory regime covering the marketing, sale, distribution and burning of solid fuels in the State. This regulatory regime is operated by the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment and is enforced by local authorities. This regime, which imposes higher...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Tax Credits (27 Sep 2018)

Paschal Donohoe: The estimated cost of increasing the Earned Income Tax Credit from €1,150 to €1,650 to match the PAYE Credit can be found on page 6 of the Revenue Pre-Budget 2019 Ready Reckoner, available at . The estimated first year cost is €68 million and the full year cost is €121 million.

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Tax Data (27 Sep 2018)

Paschal Donohoe: A number of legislative changes have been made in recent years to ensure that income and gains arising to real estate investment funds active in the Irish property market are subject to tax. For example, Finance Act 2016 made certain changes to the taxation of companies set up under section 110 companies of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 (TCA), which is designed to create a tax neutral...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Public Sector Staff Remuneration (27 Sep 2018)

Paschal Donohoe: Professional added year's schemes, in both the Civil Service and State-Sponsored Bodies, apply to pensionable employees appointed to a professional, technical or specialist post where the essential requirements specified in the competition (e.g. qualifications / experience / minimum entry age) result in all candidates from the competition being over the age of 25 on appointment. 1....

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Public Sector Staff Remuneration (27 Sep 2018)

Paschal Donohoe: The detailed costings sought in this request would require detailed data on the position of staff on each salary scale across the public service and details of the standard working hours per week for each individual grade. This data is not available to the Department. Pay band data available to the Department indicates that some 96% of all public service staff are on salary points in...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Departmental Correspondence (27 Sep 2018)

Paschal Donohoe: As the Deputy will now be aware, a reply to your correspondence issued on Monday 24th September. The delay in replying to the Deputy is regretted. It was an administrative oversight, recognising the time of year where the primary focus of the department has been on the preparation for the forthcoming Budget.

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Public Appointments Service (27 Sep 2018)

Paschal Donohoe: The Public Appointments Service (PAS), an independent statutory recruitment body, advertised a competition for Investigation Officers in the Protected Disclosure Unit, Garda Ombudsman Commission in July 2017. Following the selection process conducted by PAS a panel of candidates was formed. Should any of these candidates come under consideration for a position they are informed of this and...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Budget 2019 (27 Sep 2018)

Paschal Donohoe: I propose to take Questions Nos. 82 and 83 together. As outlined in the August 2018 Fiscal Monitor published by the Department of Finance, overall gross voted expenditure to the end of August 2018 was €39,449 million. This was €152 million, or 0.4 per cent, below profile and €2,874 million, or 7.9 per cent, higher than expenditure for the same period in 2017. Gross...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Community Employment Schemes Supervisors (27 Sep 2018)

Paschal Donohoe: I refer the deputy to my previous response to PQ 35780/18.

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Ex-ante Scrutiny of Budget 2019: Minister for Finance (26 Sep 2018)

Paschal Donohoe: I thank the committee for the invitation to the meeting to discuss the forthcoming budget and I welcome the contributions members will make in this regard. I also thank the committee for its recent report which I had an opportunity to read in the last few days. The budget will be presented to the Houses of the Oireachtas on Tuesday, 9 October next. Over recent months, many elements of our...