Results 1,861-1,880 of 27,019 for speaker:Michael Noonan

Finance Bill 2016: Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stage (23 Nov 2016)

Michael Noonan: I thank the Deputy for moving the amendment, and I thank Deputies Mattie McGrath and Pearse Doherty for their contributions. Charitable organisations are, for the most part, outside the scope of VAT. This means they do not charge VAT on any goods or services they supply and they are not entitled to claim back VAT incurred on inputs related to their charitable business. In 2015, I agreed to...

Finance Bill 2016: Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stage (23 Nov 2016)

Michael Noonan: A capital gains tax relief on disposals of land or buildings acquired in the period commencing on 7 December 2011 and ending on 31 December 2013 was announced in budget 2013 and in section 64 of the Finance Act 2012. Section 44 of the Finance (No. 2) Act 2013 extended the period within which the land or buildings may be acquired for the purposes of this relief to 31 December 2014. If the...

Finance Bill 2016: Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stage (23 Nov 2016)

Michael Noonan: Deputy McGrath’s amendment raises the issue of the tax treatment of the installation of solar panels on farmland. I will speak first to the detail of the proposed amendment and then to the wider issue. Deputy McGrath proposes changing the definition of “farm land” in section 664 of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997. While his amendment as drafted refers to reliefs from...

Finance Bill 2016: Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stage (23 Nov 2016)

Michael Noonan: The 12.5% rate of corporation tax is the cornerstone of our corporate tax policy. It has been a key driver of inward investment since its introduction in the late 1990s. A number of studies over the past few years have proved how important the 12.5% rate is to the Irish economy. In 2014, the Department of Finance published an economic impact assessment of Ireland’s corporation tax...

Finance Bill 2016: Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stage (23 Nov 2016)

Michael Noonan: If Deputy Boyd Barrett believes social services were better in the 1950s-----

Finance Bill 2016: Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stage (23 Nov 2016)

Michael Noonan: That is the mistake of a young man as he did not live through it. There have been enormous advances in this country under several Governments in terms of health services, education and living standards of the people in both urban and rural Ireland. That is an absolute fact. I do not really have anything to add further to that.

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Tax Collection (23 Nov 2016)

Michael Noonan: It is understood the matter referred to by the Deputy concerns a redress scheme for customers of a financial institution relating to access to tracker mortgages.  Before determining the tax consequences on this matter the Revenue Commissioners have advised me that they would need to examine the detailed documentation. However, it is also understood that should a tax liability attach to...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Mortgage Debt (23 Nov 2016)

Michael Noonan: Section 2 of the Consumer Credit Act 1995 (as amended) defines a "housing loan" and it includes "an agreement for the provision of credit to a person on the security of a mortgage of a freehold or leasehold estate or an interest in land on which a house is constructed where the house is to be used, or to continue to be used, as the principal residence of the person or the person's...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Financial Services Regulation (23 Nov 2016)

Michael Noonan: As the Deputy will appreciate, it would not be appropriate for me, as Minister for Finance, to provide legal advice on specific circumstances or to intervene in a loan agreement between a consumer and a financial institution. However, on the issue more generally I have been advised by the Central Bank that for credit agreements involving a total amount of credit of more than...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Motor Insurance Regulation (23 Nov 2016)

Michael Noonan: As Minister for Finance, I am responsible for the development of the legal framework governing financial regulation. Neither I nor the Central Bank of Ireland, can interfere in the provision or pricing of insurance products, as these matters are of a commercial nature, and are determined by insurance companies based on an assessment of the risks they are willing to...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Financial Services Regulation (23 Nov 2016)

Michael Noonan: The regulation of securities, including binary options, is the responsibility of the Central Bank, working in cooperation with the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA).   I am engaging with the Central Bank on this matter, however all the information is not currently to hand. I will forward it to the Deputy as soon as it is available.

Finance Bill 2016: Report Stage (22 Nov 2016)

Michael Noonan: Deputy Pearse Doherty's amendment would cost an additional €12 million to implement in 2017 and €22 million in a full year. To answer Deputy Michael McGrath's query, the commitment in A Programme for a Partnership Government is to increase the earned income credit to €1,650 by 2018 as part of a Government objective to provide a supportive environment for...

Finance Bill 2016: Report Stage (22 Nov 2016)

Michael Noonan: I will deal first with the Deputy's question about charities and non-commercial boards. An exemption already applies in such cases under section 195A of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997. That section exempts from tax the reimbursement of expenses of travel and subsistence to certain members of non-commercial bodies in both the public and private sector in respect of attendance at meetings...

Finance Bill 2016: Report Stage (22 Nov 2016)

Michael Noonan: The reason I am including the cap is that I am not quite sure what the overall cost might be. I am also responding to the points made by Deputy Pearse Doherty and others that it should not provide for a bonanza for non-executive directors who were non-executive directors in a variety of boards and whose directors' fees and expenses could amount to very significant sums of money which would...

Finance Bill 2016: Report Stage (22 Nov 2016)

Michael Noonan: If we were to increase it by one third each year, the amount would be €550 each year. The reason I brought the figure back to €400 this year is twofold. First, there are very limited resources available. As the Deputy knows, we had to spread thinkly what we had available in the budget for tax reductions or anything to do with tax. As well as this, there was a fairness test,...

Finance Bill 2016: Report Stage (22 Nov 2016)

Michael Noonan: I appreciate the difficulty Opposition Deputies have in framing amendments that will considered to be in order, the device of looking for a report on a particular topic being the way around it. I do not object to this, but one never knows on this side of the House whether an amendment is being tabled to seek an opportunity to debate a topic or whether its objectively is actually to seek a...

Finance Bill 2016: Report Stage (22 Nov 2016)

Michael Noonan: I move amendment No. 4:In page 6, between lines 18 and 19, to insert the following: “Exemption in respect of certain expense payments for resident relevant directors 3. The Principal Act is amended by inserting the following section after section 195C:“Exemption in respect of certain expense payments for resident relevant directors 195D. (1) In this...

Finance Bill 2016: Report Stage (22 Nov 2016)

Michael Noonan: Deputies will be aware that this amendment was put forward on Committee Stage and, while it was not discussed, relevant points were touched on in relation to the discussions we had around the USC. The Deputies' request refers to a report specifically relating to the impact of the USC on a socially just income distribution. However, an analysis of the impact of one taxation measure in...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Betting Licences Data (22 Nov 2016)

Michael Noonan: I am advised by Revenue that the folkowing table sets out the details requested.  Licence Category Duty Payable € No. of Licences issued 2015 No. opting for split payment facility Total Receipts 2015 € No. Of Licences Issued  2016 (to date) No. opting for split  payment facility Total Receipts 2016 (to date) € Remote Bookmaker's Licence 10,000 32 6...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Tax Code (22 Nov 2016)

Michael Noonan: The commencement date for the Help to Buy scheme of 19 July 2016 was chosen as it was the date of the launch of 'Rebuilding Ireland - Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness', in which the development of such a scheme for inclusion in the Budget was initially announced. The intention to backdate this tax incentive to this date was announced at that time with a view...