Michael Colreavy (Sligo-North Leitrim, Sinn Fein)
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To ask the Minister for Finance the plans, if any, he has to prepare and publish a full cost benefit analysis, including the cost to the Exchequer, of all existing tax reliefs; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42275/12]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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The issue of cost benefit analysis of tax expenditures was considered by the Commission on Taxation. The Commission was of the opinion that tax expenditures should be the subject of ongoing evaluation and appropriate and timely cost benefit analysis. This is to ensure that they are both economically efficient and that parliamentary oversight can be well informed. However, there is an underlying principle of proportionality in cost benefit analysis. In other words - the level of resources invested in carrying out the analysis should be commensurate with the scale of the expenditure involved.

In addition sufficient time is needed to undertake the analysis required for various measures.

An example of such work recently conducted by my Department would be the Economic Impact Assessment of Potential Changes to Legacy Property Reliefs. This assessment, undertaken last year and published by my Department, included a consultation paper, engagement from over 700 submissions and an analysis, enabled the Department to understand the possible legacy costs to the State as well as the impacts on individuals and economic sectors of a change in law relating to the use of these particular reliefs.

Another example, which is currently work in progress, is the Public Consultation on Section 481 Film Tax Relief. I published a consultation paper which set out preliminary analysis and data and invited interested parties to make submissions as part of an economic impact assessment of film tax relief. The impact assessment will enable the Department to better understand the benefits that may accrue to the exchequer as well as consequences for investors, the audiovisual industry, and the wider economy arising from potential changes to the relief.

Such approaches provide a transparent and comprehensive process in line with best international practice for policy evaluation.

I would note further that costs of tax credits, allowances and reliefs are provided by the Office of the Revenue Commissioners in their Annual Statistical Reports. The most recent figures related to tax expenditures appear in the 2010 report, which sets out the total identifiable costs to the Exchequer of all income tax and corporation tax allowances, reliefs, exemptions and tax credits available for 2008 and 2009, the most recent year for which information is available. The work of updating cost details for the following year is well advanced and Revenue hope to be in a position to publish them in the near future.

Finally, I would advise the Deputy that all tax reliefs are kept under review and as a matter of course form part of the Tax Strategy Group’s (TSG) discussions in advance of the Budget. The TSG papers are subsequently published on the Department of Finance’s tax policy website: www.taxpolicy.gov.ie.