Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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To ask the Minister for Finance if he will include the tyre industry in the list of businesses that trade in cash which are to be targeted on the basis of compliance with Revenue and other standards; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54540/12]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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I am advised by the Revenue Commissioners that they are very mindful of the unfair competitive advantage to be gained by those businesses that do not fulfil their tax obligations. It is the role of Revenue to ensure that all businesses, regardless of the type of activity they are engaged in, are registered for the appropriate taxes and duties, and that they fulfill their obligations with regard to the filing of returns and the payment of taxes. Revenue has a strong focus on cash businesses, given their potential high-risk nature. Revenue uses a wide range of approaches to identify those who under-declare their income and/or are operating in the shadow/hidden economy, and deploys the full range of compliance interventions to tackle those risks. Activities undertaken can include covert surveillance, cold calls to businesses and venues, aspect queries on specific compliance issues as well as full audits and, where warranted, prosecutions.

I am further advised by the Commissioners that, specifically regarding the retail and wholesale motor vehicle parts and accessories sector (which includes the tyre distributor industry), 25 Audits have been carried out to the end of October 2012, yielding €407,063. In 2011, 37 audits were carried out in this sector, with a yield of €483,070.

The Commissioners also advise that their tax and duty compliance programmes are under constant review to ensure that they are focussed on the areas of greatest risk, including risks from the shadow/hidden economy. In addition, the Revenue Commissioners advise that they hold meetings with trade and representative bodies through The Hidden Economy Monitoring Group where the risks posed by shadow/hidden economy activities are evaluated. Furthermore, the Commissioners advise that they are willing to meet with any party interested in passing on specific insights into tax evasion, and that all such information received will be followed up on, but for reasons of confidentiality Revenue will not be in a position to provide any specific feedback on information received.

The Deputy should also note that changes are frequently made in tax legislation aimed at counteracting shadow economy activity. Two recent examples are the introduction of a more robust Relevant Contracts Tax regime and an enhanced penalty regime for employers who fail to operate PAYE regulations fully.