Liam Twomey (Fine Gael)

Some of the approaches to taxing income are a bit of a mess. With the income levy a person can change from paying nothing to paying a significant amount on the flip of a euro, which is discriminatory. This is why we propose a graded increase for people who are required to pay the levy, which would be fairer than the proposal in the Bill. The Government may need to review all such payments. There are different thresholds and income limits for an entire range of payments. Some people running businesses will need to employ people to work out these rates. Not only is this provision discriminatory against the person required to pay the income levy, but it adds an additional burden on the administration of companies with all these different thresholds. PRSI, the income levy, the health levy and income tax itself are all taxes on the people. They are a bit of a mess and need serious review. The levy is bad for the person who must pay it and a mess for employers who have enough on their hands without having to deal with this.