Michael McDowell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

The result of it being that high is we have a diminished flow of transactions that are liable to capital gains tax. If we were to reduce the rate of capital gains tax from 33% to 20%, the revenue jump for the Government would be very useful in financing many social expenditure programmes.

My third point is not party political either but should be mentioned today. The universal social charge, which was due for abolition in the term of this Government according to certain parties that I will not name because of the Christmas spirit and charity that is around, is still in place. We should mark that point as well.

Fourth, I acknowledge that this is a minority Government which has to govern with the input of others. Nonetheless, the entry point for the top rate of tax plus the universal social charge for many ordinary workers is far too low. That, too, was supposed to be dealt with in the lifetime of this Government and for various reasons it has not been. In that context, I am saying that if we are-----