Written Answers Nos. 180-194
184. Deputy Michelle Mulherin asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the position regarding an appeal for carer's allowance in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Mayo; if it will be expedited due to the hardship the delay is causing the family; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45323/14]
View answerI am advised by the Social Welfare Appeals Office that an Appeals Officer, having fully considered all of the available evidence, has decided to disallow the appeal of the person concerned by way of an Oral Hearing. The person concerned was notified of the Appeals Officer’s decision in writing on 17 November 2014.
The Social Welfare Appeals Office functions independently of the Minister for Social Protection and of the Department and is responsible for determining appeals against decisions in relation to social welfare entitlements.
187. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection if her Department, or any agency of her Department, has awarded any contracts to a company (details supplied) since 9 March 2011. [45352/14]
View answerNeither the Department nor any agency of the Department has awarded any contracts to the company concerned since 9 March 2011.
188. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the estimated administrative costs of implementing the new water conservation payment; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45392/14]
View answerThe Department of Social Protection will administer, on behalf of the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government, a €100 water conservation grant for households that complete a valid response to Irish Water’s customer registration process. The grant will be paid to the registered householders annually, in respect of their primary dwellings, with the first payment to be paid in September 2015 and each subsequent year up to and including 2018.
The water conservation grant replaces the tax rebate and social protection measures previously announced.
The Department of Social Protection is in consultation with the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform in regard to the staffing and funding required to administer the scheme.
189. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Finance the position regarding the property tax in respect of a person (details supplied) in Dublin 5; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45084/14]
View answerI note that in the details supplied by the Deputy the individual concerned has asked why there are no concessions for the elderly when paying the Local Property Tax (LPT).
The Government decided that a liability to the LPT should apply to all owners of residential properties with a limited number of exemptions. As a matter of Government policy, and in order to keep the rate of the tax low, the Government agreed that reliefs should be targeted at owner occupiers where there is inability to pay the tax. Limiting the exemptions available allows the rate to be kept low for those liable persons who do not qualify for an exemption. While there are no specific concessions for the elderly such as an exemption from, or a reduction in, the charge to LPT, the Finance (Local Property Tax) Act 2012 (as amended) contains certain provisions that may be relevant, depending on the particular circumstances involved.
Section 5 of the LPT legislation provides for an exemption where a property that was previously occupied by a person as their sole or main residence has been vacated by the person for 12 months or more due to long term mental or physical infirmity. An exemption may also apply where the period is less than 12 months, if a doctor is satisfied that the person is unlikely at any stage to return to the property. In both cases, the exemption only applies where the property is not occupied by any other person.
For individuals on low incomes the LPT legislation provides for the possibility of deferring the LPT charge in certain cases. A full deferral of the charge can be claimed where an individual's gross annual income does not exceed €15,000 or €25,000 in the case of a couple. To qualify for a partial deferral of the tax (50%), the property owner's gross annual income must not exceed €25,000 or €35,000 in the case of a couple. A property owner whose only income source is a Department of Social Protection (DSP) payment and who is occupying their property as their sole or main residence would qualify for deferral. In all cases, interest will be charged on LPT amounts deferred at a rate of 4% per annum. I am assured that the application process for deferral and partial deferral is a simple matter and can be done through the online system at www.revenue.ie or by contacting the LPT Helpline at 1890 200 255.
I am advised by the Revenue Commissioners that where deferral or partial deferral is not applicable, there is a wide range of payment options available to assist property owners in paying their LPT charge in a manner and at a time that best suits their individual circumstances. This includes paying in full in a single payment or making phased payments over the course of 2015. Phased payments include deduction at source from DSP payments, monthly direct debits from a current account and regular weekly or monthly payments to a payment service provider (An Post, Payzone, PayPoint and Omnivend).
I am also advised by the Revenue Commissioners that full details of the various payment options, including deferral of the tax, are available on the Revenue website at www.revenue.ie.
190. Deputy Timmy Dooley asked the Minister for Finance his views on changing the tax saver rebate scheme to be a pay and claim process in order to broaden the number of users of the scheme; if he will provide details on the number of users of the scheme in each transport system in which it currently operates in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45319/14]
View answerI understand the Deputy to be referring to the Travel Pass/Taxsaver commuter ticket scheme. The scheme operates on the basis that an employer pays for the ticket on behalf of an employee, typically at the start of the year, and the payment is then deducted from the employee's emoluments over the course of the year. The incentive operates on the basis that, although such a payment out of an employee's income should be made out of after-tax income, section 118B of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 provides that the remuneration foregone shall be exempt from tax. This has the effect of reducing the cost of the ticket to the employee by the amount of tax that would have been paid on the equivalent amount of income at the employee's marginal rate (the highest rate of tax at which the employee is paying tax). In this way the employee, over the course of a year, only suffers the net cost of the Travel Pass, deducted on a weekly, fortnightly or monthly basis, with the total initial cost met by his or her employer.
Where an employer provides a ticket without charge to an employee, section 118(5A) of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 provides that there is no benefit-in-kind charge on the employee in relation to cost of the Pass.
I take it that the Deputy's proposal relates to employees whose employers may not be in a position to, or willing to, operate the existing scheme. Under this proposal, therefore, the employee would meet the cost of the ticket at the outset and submit a claim to Revenue in respect of it by which he or she would be refunded the tax by way of repayment or adjustment to his or her tax credits. Prices can range from over €1,300 for annual travel on Dublin Bus only, (tax refund at 41% - €533), to over €6,000 to include Irish Rail, Dublin Bus and Bus Éireann, (tax refund at 41% - €2,460). Apart from the additional cost to the Exchequer, this would lead to an additional overhead in verifying claims. Provision of passes by employers who are subject to a general PAYE audit system is administratively more efficient.
On that basis I would have no plans to modify the scheme as it presently exists; I am satisfied that it works well for the vast majority of employees who wish to avail of it.
The bus, train or ferry pass must be issued by an approved transport provider as defined in section 118 (5A) of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997, however neither my Department nor Revenue maintains specific statistics in relation to the numbers of employees availing of the scheme.
191. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Minister for Finance the interest payments due per annum on the National Pensions Reserve Fund loan to finance water meters per annum in 2014 and each year from 2015 to 2019; when the loan will be fully repaid and the total costs of the loan. [45397/14]
View answerIn July 2013, in order to meet expected costs arising, Irish Water entered into a €250m bridging loan facility with the National Pensions Reserve Fund Commission (NPRF), which is repayable in September 2015. This facility was part drawn at the end of 2013 and was fully drawn down during 2014. Earlier this month, the NPRF agreed to increase the amount available under this facility to €300m, which has also been drawn down. As the loan facility was entered into prior to the introduction of full water legislation and the water regulatory regime, the facility was guaranteed by the Minister for Finance in accordance with Section 13 of the Water Services Act 2013. Under the terms of the facility, interest and commitment fees on the loan are rolled-up and added to the amount repayable by Irish Water at the end of the loan's term. These rolled up amounts are expected by Irish Water to be approximately €14 million by September 2015. A fee is also payable by Irish Water to the Minister for Finance under the terms of the guarantee provided by the Minister. To date Irish Water has paid €4.8 million with a further c.€5.6 million expected to be paid over the remainder of the loan's term.
The Minister for Finance does not have an estimate of the precise elements of this loan which could be set against the capital cost of the installation of the water meters.
192. Deputy Robert Dowds asked the Minister for Finance his plans to introduce a vacant sites tax on land that is zoned but has yet to be built on; if so, the rate he will apply to such land; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44797/14]
View answerThe Deputy will be aware that I announced on Budget Day that it was my intention to launch a public consultation in the coming months on this issue. There is a view that owners of zoned and serviced land are waiting for higher prices and that is why they are not taking steps to develop their land or sell it to others who will. If this turns out to be a valid point of view, I will examine what taxation measures might be taken to penalise land owners who do not develop land that is already zoned and serviced. Any decisions regarding taxation or other appropriate measures will follow the consultation process.
193. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for Finance if the Central Bank of Ireland has concerns that Irish investors' moneys could be at risk, or know of any other criminal activities by a certain bank and their agent, as a result of unlicensed and unauthorised banking activities in an investigation (details supplied). [44826/14]
View answerThe Central Bank has informed me that all alleged instances of unauthorised activity that come to the attention of the Central Bank are investigated in full and appropriate action is taken where necessary.
The Central Bank does not comment on any individual investigations.
194. Deputy Arthur Spring asked the Minister for Finance if his attention has been drawn to the net income margin being generated from variable rate mortgages within all banks in which the State is a stakeholder; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44932/14]
View answerI can confirm for the Deputy that I am aware of the net interest margin being generated from variable rate mortgages at the banks including the discussions that were had in this regard at the recent meetings of the Joint Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform with the banks' CEOs.
At the Committee the banks pointed out that in comparing the SVR mortgage margin of Irish banks to other jurisdictions, it is important to understand that the difference reflects many factors and in particular loss experience which determines the capital that must be held against these loans. In recent years this has obviously been very different for Irish banks compared to their counterparts in other European countries. Funding models also differ between Ireland and other countries. Finally, they pointed out the shortcomings of comparing mortgage rates against short term ECB funding rates given the significant liquidity risk which is a feature of mortgages that typically have a term of 20+ years.
The Deputy will be aware however that I, in my role as Minister for Finance, have no direct function in the relationship between the banks and their customers. I have no statutory function in relation to the banking decisions made by individual lending institutions at any particular time and these are taken by the board and management of the relevant institution. This includes decisions in relation to product interest rates as determined by the banks from time to time.
Notwithstanding the State's shareholdings in the banks, I must ensure that the banks are run on a commercial, cost effective and independent basis to ensure their value as an asset to the State. A Relationship Framework has been specified that defines the nature of the relationship between the Minister for Finance and each bank. These Frameworks were published on 30 March 2012 and can be found at http://banking.finance.gov.ie/presentations-and-latest-documents.
