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Normal View

Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 9 Nov 1971

Vol. 256 No. 8

Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - PAYE for State Employees.

16.

asked the Minister for Finance whether he intends introducing PAYE for lower-paid State employees.

The PAYE system applies to employees irrespective of the level of their income and it would not be feasible to single out any group of State employees for inclusion in the scheme by reference to the amounts of their income.

I should add that special legislation would be required to extend PAYE to State employees generally and there appears to be no substantial evidence of a desire on their part for inclusion in the scheme.

In view of the fact that income tax paid by State employees is paid on their previous year's earnings they would in fact lose if they were put on PAYE. The fact that earnings are known before the beginning of the tax year means that it should be possible for his Department to decide what deductions should be made from their wages for each week during the year and have those deductions made on a regular basis?

In regard to the first part of the Deputy's supplementary what he says is certainly the commonly held view. In regard to the second part I am not aware of any substantial difficulty in regard to the deductions which are made. There are some occasions when there is a certain amount of difficulty but they form a very small percentage of the number of cases involved and they arise out of the circumstances of the particular individual concerned.

Does the Minister not agree that the first part of my supplementary is correct and that the tax is collected on the previous year's income? That is not a commonly held view; it is correct.

It is commonly held that it is advantageous.

It is advantageous for one year because if a fellow stops working in that particular year he does not get caught for the next year. With regard to the other matter, is the Minister not aware that when the recent adjustment to wages took place in the Board of Works for some peculiar reason employees had as much as £7 and £8 deducted out of a week's earnings of £17? Does he not consider that that calls for some type of change?

Hear, hear.

I do not think, as a general rule, that deductions of that proportion are justified. I have taken action in any cases that I have come across of that kind. There have been very few. But there are some cases which can arise because of the particular circumstances of an individual and this kind of thing can occur with justification; but as a general rule such deductions of that proportion are not justified.

Would the Minister not tell them to deduct the same amount each week from the start of the tax year?

It is not quite as simple as that but a result substantially similar could be and is achieved in most cases.

It is not achieved but could be achieved.

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