Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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Question 309: To ask the Minister for Finance the effective tax rate paid by taxpayers in each decile by range of total income in 1997, 1998, 2001, 2002 and in the most recent years for which an estimate is available; and the aggregate tax paid by each decile in the respective years. [31557/05]

Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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I am informed by the Revenue Commissioners that the most recent data available on incomes and tax by income decile are in respect of the income tax year 2002.

The information requested is set out in the following tables for the income tax years 1997-98, 1998-99, 2001 "short" year and 2002.

The 2001 short income tax year was a short transitional tax "year" running from 6 April to 31 December 2001 which preceded the first full calendar tax year 1 January 2002 to 31 December 2002. It should be noted that as PAYE taxpayers were charged to tax on their earnings in the period from 6 April to 31 December 2001 and self-employed taxpayers were assessed to tax for the short "year" on 74% of the profits earned in a 12 month accounting period, the income figures will not be directly comparable with those of earlier or later years.

To assemble the figures by decile the total number of income earners on the income tax record for each year was broken down into ten equal groups and distributed over ten income ranges in ascending order of gross income. The figures for effective tax rate and aggregate tax liability were then established for each decile group as appropriate. As both the income levels and the numbers of income earners changed each year the income tranches representing the different deciles also vary from year to year. It should be noted that the tax liability in any of the income deciles shown also includes a liability to DIRT. In the lower deciles, this is likely to be the only tax liability arising.

The income ranges referred to in this examination relate to gross income. Gross income is income which: is prior to deductions for capital allowances, interest paid, losses, allowable expenses, retirement annuities etc; is after deduction of superannuation contributions by employees but not by the self-employed; includes income of individuals whose total income falls below the exemption limits; does not include certain other income which is not income for tax purposes or is exempt from tax such as profits or gains from stallion fees, profits from commercial forestry and certain income from patent royalties, certain investment income arising from personal injuries, child benefit, maternity benefit and unemployment assistance paid by the Department of Social, Community and Family Affairs, certain earnings of writers, composers and artists, bonus or interest paid under instalment savings schemes operated by An Post, interest on certain Government securities, certain foreign pensions which are exempt from tax in the foreign paying country, portion of certain lump sums received by employees on cessation of their employment, statutory redundancy payments and certain military pensions; and does not include or not fully include other income sources such as interest income that does not need to be declared or is not recorded, but from which tax has been deducted, unemployment benefit and disability benefit, non-recording of non-taxable amounts and of amounts taxed by restriction of repayments or indirectly through employers in the PAYE system, and the incomes of certain self-employed persons, including some farmers, as well as some individuals in receipt of pensions, who are not processed annually on tax records because their incomes are below the income tax thresholds. The information on incomes is based on income returns on Revenue records at the time the data were compiled for analytical purposes, representing 90% or more of all returns expected.

A married couple who has elected or has been deemed to have elected for joint assessment is counted as one tax unit.

Denis Naughten (Longford-Roscommon, Fine Gael)
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Question 310: To ask the Minister for Finance the amount of moneys taken in since 2002 by his Department from capital gains tax and stamp duty from transfers of farm property; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31703/05]

Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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I am informed by the Revenue Commissioners that the precise information requested by the Deputy is not available.