Liz O'Donnell (Dublin South, Progressive Democrats)
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Question 236: To ask the Minister for Finance the position regarding his Department's and the Office of the Revenue Commissioner's review of the tax exemption for artists under the Finance Act 1969 and section 195 of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997; the value of the exemption; if a conclusion has been reached as to the retention or otherwise of this specific exemption; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34783/05]

Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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The tax exemption for artists is under review in the context of the budget. I refer the Deputy to the long standing practice of Ministers for Finance not to comment on what may or may not be contained in upcoming budgets. I do not intend to depart from that approach.

I am informed by the Revenue Commissioners that the latest relevant and sufficiently complete information available from tax returns is in respect of the income tax year 2002. The cost of the exemption to the Exchequer in that year was approximately €23 million.

Arthur Morgan (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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Question 237: To ask the Minister for Finance the number of cases in which claims by organisations to have been established for charitable purposes have been found by the Revenue Commissioners to be false after granting such an organisation an exemption from tax; and the amount of defrauded tax which has been recouped on each such occasion. [34816/05]

Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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The Revenue Commissioners' role in relation to charities is the determination of entitlement to tax exemption on funds applied for charitable purposes. In that context, Revenue has informed me that detailed procedures are in place towards ensuring that the initial application by each body meets the criteria for charitable exemption. Full details on the application process are set out in information booklet CHY1, Applying for Relief from Tax on the Income and Property of Charities, which can be found on the Revenue website, www.revenue.ie. In additional, Revenue operates a number of controls and monitoring procedures on bodies to which they have granted charitable exemption.

Revenue has informed me that it has no record of any case where the claim to have been established for charitable purposes was found to be false after the application was granted. Where the tax exemption has been withdrawn in certain instances, it has generally been the case that the charity has either become defunct or has failed to comply with the conditions attaching to exemption such as the submission of annual accounts or other details.