asked the Minister for Finance if he will state the proportion of the wealth of the State held by (a) the State (b) limited companies and trusts (c) private owners and (d) any other bodies.
95.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Distribution of National Wealth.
94.
asked the Minister for Finance how the wealth of the State is estimated and the categories into which it is divided (a) as regards source or origin and (b) as regards ownership.
96.
asked the Minister for Finance if 75 per cent of the personal wealth of the country is owned by 5 per cent of the people; and if he will make a statement on the position and indicate the sources of his information.
Mr. Kenny
With your permission, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle, I propose to take Questions Nos. 94, 95, and 96 together.
To take the last question first, I presume that the Deputy has in mind a private research publication of last year which was based on an analysis of estate duty statistics. This analysis suggested that 5 per cent of the population owned 72 per cent of the personal wealth. As the author himself pointed out, however, the results of his study, based as they were on a small sample of estates examined for estate duty purposes, are subject to so many reservations that they must be approached with caution. Apart from the statistical limitations the results are subject to other limitations-for example in regard to the valuation of assets for taxation purposes.
Accordingly, it has by no means been proved conclusively that 72 per cent of the personal wealth of the country is owned by 5 per cent of the people.
As to the estimation and distribution of the national wealth as a whole —which embraces as well as personal wealth other forms of wealth such as hospitals, schools, State forests, and so on—the information sought by the Deputy is not available. The task of estimating national wealth with a reasonable degree of accuracy would be a long and complex one and has never been officially undertaken.