Vol. 480 No. 2
148 Mr. N. Ahern asked the Minister for Finance the tax situation of a person who gives up work to care for an elderly parent and who lives thereafter on a private pension; if he will grant an extra tax-free allowance in such cases; the estimate, if any, there is of the numbers who would qualify; and, if so, the overall annual cost. [13458/97]
The Income Tax Acts do not provide specific tax allowances or reliefs for a person who gives up work to care for an elderly parent. The person is of course entitled to the normal statutory allowances and reliefs against taxable income, including the dependent relative allowance where appropriate.
As the Deputy will be aware, An Action Programme for the Millennium envisages a new tax allowance for those who care for the aged. I will be looking at this and other allowances for the aged in the run up to the budget and in particular as the numbers who might qualify and the cost involved.
