Vol. 428 No. 1
142 Mr. J. Bruton asked the Minister for Finance if he will give details of the information that is currently available from official sources on income distribution between one county and another, and between those with high incomes and those with low incomes; and if the evidence available suggests a widening of differentials or a narrowing of differentials over the last ten years.
The Central Statistics Office does not compile information on income levels by county. The Office of the Revenue Commissioners, in the course of its administration of the income tax system, compiles and publishes an extensive range of income distribution statistics for the State. The most recent information available is the Commissioners' Statistical Report for 1991 covering the income tax year 1989/90. The Revenue Commissioners' existing statistical databases of income distribution contain no indicators of a taxpayer's county of residence, and hence a county by county breakdown of the income distribution statistics is not available. Accordingly it is not feasible to indicate whether intercounty income differentials have widened or narrowed over the past ten years.
