Vol. 498 No. 6
115 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Finance the way in which the level of vehicle registration tax as announced in the recent budget compares with other EU member states; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28270/98]
116 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Finance the level of vehicle registration tax payable on motor cars in each of the EU member states; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28271/98]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 115 and 116 together.
As the Deputy will appreciate, I have no responsibility for the taxes applicable in other EU member states. Vehicle registration taxes or taxes relating to vehicles, of one form or other, are applied in some member states. These taxes are operated in a variety of ways and, as such, are not directly comparable with VRT as applied here. Some states' taxes are based on cc and others on fuel consumption.
Germany, France, Luxembourg, Sweden and the UK do not charge taxes similar to VRT. Many EU states, including the UK, have far higher taxes on petrol than that applied in Ireland.
