I propose to take Questions Nos. 2, 5, and 39, together.
There were 12 sheriffs appointed to take over from the county registrars the function of executing tax certificates under section 485 of the Income Tax Act, 1967. I propose to circulate their names, and the amounts of tax and interest paid over by each of them to the Collector-General, on a separate table in the Official Report. The aggregate amount received to date from the new sheriffs is, in round figures, £21.7 million.
The fees and expenses payable to sheriffs are set out in the Fees Orders made by the Minister for Justice under section 14 of the Enforcement of Court Orders Act, 1926. These fees and expenses are levied on the defaulter and are retained by the sheriff to meet the costs of executing his office. Sheriffs account monthly to the Collector-General of the Revenue Commissioners in respect of tax and interest but are not required to return particulars of fees and expenses levied under the Fees Orders. Consequently, statistics of these amounts are not available.
There are at present no plans to appoint additional sheriffs.
Detailed statistics of amounts of tax held by sheriffs are not available. Sheriffs are required to transmit to the Collector-General the moneys received in full settlement of a certificate in a month by the middle of the following month. The sheriff is required to provide, in relation to each payment, the date he received the amount from the defaulter.
Interest earned on moneys in the hands of sheriffs pending transmission to the Collector-General accrues to the benefit of the sheriff. The sheriff is not required to provide particulars of this interest in the monthly return he makes to the Collector-General and, consequently, statistics of the amount of the interest are not available.
Though the new sheriffs have the sole responsibility of executing tax certificates under section 485 of the Income Tax Act, 1967, they were appointed under the statutes relating to civil debt collection and are officers of the court. In the exercise of their function they are bound by the laws and regulations governing the collection of civil debts of any kind.
The sheriffs operate under general guidelines from the Revenue in relation to administrative matters such as the time taken to process warrants and the transmission of moneys to the Collector-General. However, in relation to the execution of warrants they are constrained by the provisions of the civil debt collection law and would be answerable before the courts for any breach of that law.
Sheriff
|
Counties
|
Amounts paid over to Revenue to date
|
|
|
£000
|
Mr. Frank Lanigan, Carlow
|
Carlow, Kildare
|
1,197
|
Mr. Seamus Mallon, Castleblayney, County Monaghan
|
Cavan, Leitrim, Longford, Monaghan
|
1,006
|
Mr. Plunkett Hayes, Limerick
|
Clare, Limerick
|
4,360
|
Mr. Brendan Twomey, Dunfanaghy, County Donegal
|
Donegal
|
843
|
Mr. William Glynn, Galway
|
Galway
|
3,249
|
Mr. Donal Kelliher, Castleisland, Co. Kerry
|
Kerry
|
646
|
Mr. Thomas Murran, Waterford
|
Kilkenny, Waterford
|
2,683
|
Mr. Frederick Binchy, Clonmel, County Tipperary
|
Laois, Offaly, Tipperary
|
362
|
Mr. Patrick Cusack, Oldcastle, County Meath
|
Louth, Meath, Westmeath
|
3,455
|
Mr. Charles Kelly, Swinford, County Mayo
|
Mayo
|
740
|
Mr. Thomas Callan, Boyle, County Roscommon
|
Roscommon, Sligo
|
172
|
Mr. William Ruttledge, Wicklow
|
Wexford, Wicklow
|
3,033
|
|
|
21,746
|