Thursday, 15 Nov 2012

Written Answers Nos. 70-80

Disabled Drivers Grant Eligibility

Questions (70)

Arthur Spring

Question:

70. Deputy Arthur Spring asked the Minister for Finance if a review of the qualification criteria for the primary medical certificate is required; and if there is a need to consider the inclusion of further disabilities in the qualifying criteria for the primary medical certificate in order to permit persons, suffering from such disabilities and who are forced to make adaptions to their vehicles as a result of these disabilities, to avail of the tax reliefs provided through the disabled drivers and disabled passengers scheme [50776/12]

Written answers

Minister for Finance

The Disabled Drivers and Disabled Passengers (Tax Concession) Scheme provides relief from VAT and VRT (up to a certain limit), and exemption from motor tax, on the purchase of an adapted car for transport of a person with specific severe and permanent physical disabilities. The disability criteria for these concessions are set out in the Disabled Drivers and Disabled Passengers (Tax Concessions) Regulations 1994. To get a Primary Medical Certificate, an applicant must be permanently and severely disabled within the terms of these Regulations.

A number of Government departments and agencies are involved in meeting the mobility needs of people with disabilities. A vehicle tax concession scheme is only part of the overall approach and its operation is reviewed on an ongoing basis.

Some 13,000 people benefited under the scheme in 2011 at an overall estimated cost of €51 million. Given the scale and scope of the scheme, any possible changes can only be made after careful consideration and with regard to the existing and prospective cost of the scheme and the available resources.

Tax Yield

Questions (71)

Róisín Shortall

Question:

71. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Finance further to Parliamentary Question No. 270 of 6 November 2012, if he will provide details of his estimate of the extra tax revenue that would be raised by placing a 5% levy on all income in excess of €100,000; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [50578/12]

Written answers

Minister for Finance

I assume the Deputy has in mind a 5 percentage point increase in the rate of Universal Social Charge (USC) applying to incomes exceeding €100,000. The Universal Social Charge (USC) is an individualised charge and as such the yield is calculated for individual incomes of more than €100,000. On that basis I am advised by the Revenue Commissioners that the full year yield, estimated by reference to 2012 incomes, would be €321 million. The estimated yield is based on confining the 5 percentage point increase to the portion of income which is in excess of €100,000, that is, the increase is not applied to the portion of total income earned up to €100,000.

The figure is an estimate from the Revenue tax-forecasting model using actual data for the year 2010 adjusted as necessary for income and employment trends in the interim. It is, therefore, provisional and likely to be revised.

Banking Sector Remuneration

Questions (72)

Dominic Hannigan

Question:

72. Deputy Dominic Hannigan asked the Minister for Finance if it is possible to introduce legislation to reduce the pensions of professionals who were working in State funded banks; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [50595/12]

Written answers

Minister for Finance

The Government shares the abhorrence of the public at these extravagant pensions but its scope for action to claw back or reduce such entitlements is limited due to constitutional and legal reasons which are well known to the members of the House. Pensions are generally taken to be deferred income and any action to reduce a pension in payment needs to be comprehensively founded lest it run the risk of being considered an unjust attack by the State on the property rights of individuals affected by the proposed legislation. The Government will seek to explore any avenues and options to address this issue subject to the necessary legal constraints.

Pension Provisions

Questions (73)

Pearse Doherty

Question:

73. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Finance if employees at the National Asset Management Agency pay a pension levy in accordance with the announcement of the previous administration on 3 February 2009. [50601/12]

Written answers

Minister for Finance

The National Asset Management Agency (NAMA) has no employees. Rather, under Section 42 of the NAMA Act 2009, the National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA) assigns staff to NAMA. The public service pension deduction is applied to all NTMA employees.

Pension Provisions

Questions (74, 75, 76, 77, 78)

Pearse Doherty

Question:

74. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Finance if employees at the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation, in which he is the sole shareholder of 100% of the shares, pay a pension levy in accordance with the announcement of the previous administration on 3 February 2009; and if no such levy is paid to provide an explanation for this position. [50602/12]

Pearse Doherty

Question:

75. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Finance if employees at Permanent TSB, in which he is the shareholder of 99.5% of the shares, pay a pension levy in accordance with the announcement of the previous administration on 3 February 2009; and if no such levy is paid to provide an explanation for this position. [50603/12]

Pearse Doherty

Question:

76. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Finance if employees at Irish Life, in which he is the sole shareholder of 100% of the shares, pay a pension levy in accordance with the announcement of the previous administration on 3 February 2009; and if no such levy is paid to provide an explanation for this position. [50604/12]

Pearse Doherty

Question:

77. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Finance if employees at Allied Irish Banks including the Educational Building Society, in which he is the shareholder of 99.8% of the shares, pay a pension levy in accordance with the announcement of the previous administration on 3 February 2009; and if no such levy is paid to provide an explanation for this position. [50605/12]

Pearse Doherty

Question:

78. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Finance if employees at the Bank of Ireland, in which he is the share holder of 15% of the ordinary shares and controls preference shares estimated to be worth €1.493 billion, pay a pension levy in accordance with the announcement of the previous administration on 3 February 2009; and if no such levy is paid to provide an explanation for this position. [50606/12]

Written answers

Minister for Finance

I propose to take Questions Nos. 74 to 78, inclusive, together.

The Pension Related Deduction (PRD) is known as the pension levy. This was a savings measure introduced in the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Act, 2009, brought in by the Exchequer to reduce the costs of pensions to the State. It only applies to people belonging to public service pension schemes and does not apply to semi-states or the private sector. Irrespective of the Minister’s shareholdings in each of the covered institutions, no public service pension schemes exist in those institutions and therefore the pension levy does not apply. Further information can be found on www.per.gov.ie/pensions where documents and FAQs on the PRD can be found.

Pension Provisions

Questions (79)

Pearse Doherty

Question:

79. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Finance if he will provide in tabular form the estimated annual receipts to the Exchequer which would arise if employees in the following organizations were required to pay a pension levy in accordance with the announcement of the previous administration on 3 February 2009: Allied Irish Banks incorporating the Educational Building Society, Bank of Ireland, Permanent TSB, Irish Life and Bank of Ireland. [50607/12]

Written answers

Minister for Finance

The Pension Related Deduction (PRD) is known as the pension levy. This was a savings measure introduced in the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Act, 2009, brought in by the Exchequer to reduce the costs of pensions to the State. It only applies to people belonging to public service pension schemes and does not apply to semi-states or the private sector. Irrespective of the Minister’s shareholdings in each of the covered institutions, no public service pension schemes exist in those institutions and therefore the pension levy does not apply. Further information can be found on www.per.gov.ie/pensions where documents and FAQs on the PRD can be found. I do not have sufficient information on pay rates and distribution to provide a full answer to the deputy’s question, for example the levy would only impact Irish tax residents, and I do not have a breakdown of Irish and foreign tax residents in the employ of each covered institution, nor would I have awareness of the individual circumstances of each employee and how that would affect the bands relevant to the pension levy in each case. As the Deputy will be aware the Government has commissioned a Remuneration Review across the Covered Banks and this is designed to inform future policy recommendations in this area.

Tax Yield

Questions (80)

Colm Keaveney

Question:

80. Deputy Colm Keaveney asked the Minister for Finance the revenue that would be raised if a levy of 10% was imposed on all pension payments above €100,000; 12.5% on all such payments over €200,000; 15% on all such payments over €300,000, 20% on all such payments over €400,000, and 25% on all such payments over €500,000; if he will provide a breakdown of the revenues raised by such a measure on pensions paid for from the public purse and on pensions paid from other sources. [50625/12]

Written answers

Minister for Finance

I am advised by the Revenue Commissioners that while social welfare pensions can be separately identified from other sources of income in Revenue statistics, it is not possible to do so in respect of income from other pensions. Consequently there is no complete or reliable basis available to Revenue on which an estimate of the Exchequer yield from the changes mentioned in the question could be compiled.