Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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195. To ask the Minister for Finance the steps he has taken in the interests of protecting Ireland's tax sovereignty in view of the recent developments in respect of the common consolidated tax base; the discussions he has had with his ECOFIN colleagues in this regard; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16367/17]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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The European Commission's proposal for a Common Consolidated Corporate Tax Base (CCCTB) was published in October 2016 and discussed at the November 2016 ECOFIN meeting.  During the discussion, which was held in public session, a number of my fellow Ministers gave some initial impressions of the proposal.

At the December 2016 ECOFIN, Council Conclusions were approved in respect of the Commission's wider package which includes the CCCTB proposal but there was no specific discussion of the proposals at that meeting.  I expect that there will be a further discussion on this proposal at June 2017 ECOFIN when the Maltese Presidency reports on the tax work carried out during the first half of the year. 

The CCCTB is a complex and detailed proposal and Member States need to analyse fully  its potential impact on national tax systems.  Member States have begun to discuss and debate the various aspects of the proposal in the relevant tax working parties.  Ireland is engaging constructively in these discussions while continuing to assess whether it is in line with our long-term interests.  

Member States maintain full sovereignty on tax matters and unanimity is required before any proposal can be agreed.