Vol. 505 No. 4
54 Mr. J. O'Keeffe asked the Minister for Finance his views on whether serious inheritance tax problems have arisen in many instances for persons and in particular women whose common law partners have died; and the proposals, if any, he has to deal with these problems. [12848/99]
I appreciate the concerns which the Deputy has raised and I am aware of the tax burden facing individuals, particularly on the inheritance of the family home. During this year's Finance Bill debate in the Dáil, I undertook that prior to the next budget, I would examine the capital acquisitions tax code in some detail. I want to see if we can come up with a solution that alleviates the tax burden and, at the same time, is fair to all who face similar circumstances in relation to CAT on the domestic residence.
However, it must be remembered that any changes in the CAT area are costly. The yield from inheritance tax was £77.5 million for 1998. This revenue greatly assists the Government's programme and helps achieve the ongoing goal of reducing the tax take on employment incomes. For this reason, any significant changes to the CAT must be considered in a budgetary context when choices have to be made on which elements of the tax system to address.
