Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 12 December 2019
48. Deputy Stephen Donnelly asked the Minister for Finance the examination undertaken of the use of tax instruments to support investment by general practitioners, dentists and other professionals in primary care centres, technology and service developments. [52255/19]
View answerMy Department put in place published guidelines for the evaluation of potential tax expenditures in October 2014 (http://budget.gov.ie/Budgets/2015/Documents/Tax_Expenditures_Oct14.pdf). Drawing on economic evidence, these make clear that it is important that any policy proposal which involves tax expenditures should only occur in limited circumstances where there are demonstrable market failures and where a tax-based incentive is more efficient than a direct expenditure intervention.
An examination from a tax policy perspective of the issues mentioned by the Deputy in current circumstances has yet to be carried out by my Department.
