Michael Mullins (Fine Gael)

I would like the Minister for Finance to attend the House for a discussion on how we might close some of the tax loopholes, particularly cross-Border ones, that are costing the Exchequer a significant amount of money. It has been brought to my attention recently that unscrupulous people can go to the North of Ireland and quote a VAT reference number when purchasing large pieces of equipment. By quoting a VAT number they do not actually possess, they are exempt from VAT. They then bring the equipment to machinery auctions in Dublin and elsewhere in the South, selling it with VAT added. They are thus able to pocket the VAT, while their only outlay is the 4% that the machinery auctioneers charge. Therefore, on a piece of equipment costing €100,000 VAT of 21% is added, so the unscrupulous person is pocketing a profit of €21,000 of which he or she pays €4,000 commission to the auctioneer. There is therefore a loss of €17,000 to the Exchequer. It is a significant issue and I am sure other Members have many other examples of similar situations whereby we are losing a fortune because of cross-Border activity. I would like the Minister for Finance to attend the House in the near future for a frank and open discussion on how we can avoid such negative impacts upon our State's finances.