Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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106. To ask the Minister for Finance the estimated revenue that would be raised by increasing the Revenue Commissioners' personnel (details supplied). [14872/17]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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I am advised by Revenue that Revenue's Comprehensive Review of Expenditure 2014 estimated that by increasing audit staffing resources by c.100 staff an additional exchequer yield of €50m per annum could be achieved. On this basis it is estimated that by increasing audit staffing resources by c.125 staff an additional exchequer yield of €62.5m per annum could be achieved. It was estimated that by increasing staff on compliance projects such as oils, tobacco and alcohol by 100 could raise €20m per annum.

It was noted that the investment in the training and development of a Revenue auditor or investigator can take up to three years, depending on previous relevant experience. Therefore, the full additional yield would not be available immediately.

Revenue undertakes a range of risk management interventions to target and confront those who do not comply, including tax evasion and black market activity. The objective is that people are deterred from filing inaccurate returns and from engaging in shadow economy activity and smuggling.  The range of interventions has increased in recent years. Interventions include appraisals, aspect queries, profile interviews, assurance checks, enforcement, investigation and prosecutions, as well as audits.  The appropriate intervention depends on the relevant risk. The average rate of return on each type of intervention varies depending on the intervention.  In some types of interventions to tackle evasion and the black economy, such as enforcement, the focus is on the detection of drugs and fiscal smuggling where the direct exchequer yield is not the immediate objective. It must also be recognised that Revenue has to prioritise its resources and must, for example, provide service for compliance, by making it easier and less costly to voluntarily comply. 

In the preparation for the Estimates of 2015, 2016 and 2017, Revenue made business cases for additional resources, which I fully supported. Over the Budgets of 2015, 2016 and 2017, an increase of 266 (126, 50 and 90) in additional Revenue resources was provided to deal with a wide variety of staffing requirements across audit and compliance functions, debt management functions, international tax, etc. This Government will continue to carefully consider any request by Revenue for additional resources.