Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
IRELAND HAS MADE mistakes in putting together its tax system in the past – and the country needs to learn from those failures, Michael Noonan says.
But the finance minister also said the country had been unfairly “caught in the crossfire” of sniping between the European Union and US multinationals when it came to corporate tax avoidance.
Noonan today told a tax conference, put on by the Institute of International and European Affairs (IIEA) and KPMG, that it was “no coincidence” most European Commission state-aid investigations – like the outstanding probe into Ireland’s claimed “sweetheart” deal with Apple - had been targeted at American companies.
“It is not right or fair in my view that only US companies should be targeted in the international debate on the appropriateness of global tax laws,” he said.
Mistakes, we’ve made a few
He said Ireland “like many others” had made mistakes in setting up its tax system, for example in property-related breaks which were “allowed to continue for too long with no rationale behind their maintenance”.
“The lessons learned must also be born in mind when determining our international tax strategy,” he said.
The so-called Double Irish tax regime was never part of Ireland’s tax code, what’s more it was not a sustainable way to build a thriving foreign direct investment sector for the long-term.”
In this year’s Budget, Noonan announced he was closing the much-criticised loophole which allowed multinationals to shift their profits offshore by setting up Irish-registered companies with tax bases elsewhere.
He added that the Apple state-aid case against Ireland was “weak” and added that the country would use “every legal avenue open to defend our position” if the commission ruled against the government.
A level playing field needed
But he said the country welcomed the OECD’s Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) plan, designed to address multinationals’ international tax avoidance measures, as long as it created a level playing field for everyone.
“EPS must not be about advantaging big countries over small countries and, equally, it must not be used to single out US multinational entities,” he said.
“If BEPS took this course it would merely be playing to the gallery and not be focused on real tax reform.”
At least me dole and chilrens alowence is up so dat’ll offset some of cost for me ciggies. De kids will go hungry be4 I give up me Johnny Blus!
@Tweety McTweeter: How much will the tax on ancient stereotypes have to go up before you’ll break the habit?
@Neal Ireland Hello.: how much does the tax on snowflake reality rejectors have to go up before it takes effect
Stop smoking altogether! Can’t be bothered with the arguments it’ll hit lower income society! Don’t smoke then it won’t
@Gavin: yes give up if you can. I just worked out I save 167.00 on the additional tax alone. Next step stop my addiction to sugar by giving that up.
Just smoke weed instead it’s great.
@Craic head: good man, keep the Kinihens in business and guns on the street
Strange that this can be brought in over night, yet anything useful waits until the end of the year. Pity they can’t be this productive on a daily basis!
It should be put up by € 10 actually if not more. Major cause of hospital admissions due to smoking related diseases.
@Deirdre D’Arcy Murphy: and the huge tax smokers pay offsets the cost.
@Deirdre D’Arcy Murphy: They won’t, as if people quit smoking and drinking, they’re screwed! If they really wanted people to quit, it’d be €50 a pack, but they need the money.
I’ve no intentions of quitting, sure I get them from abroad anyway.
@Joe Travers: and wait until you see the final days of your / they’re lives due to smoking -shocking.
@Deirdre D’Arcy Murphy: I’m sure a pensioner who has smoked all their lives and paid taxes really deserves that.
Think before you talk Deirdre, it’s ok for someone working but if that’s all a pensioner looks forward too, I think that sort of an increase is disgusting. And im an ex smoker.
@Deirdre D’Arcy Murphy: no one will buy and all trade will be done black market, most of it is now anyway. Polish and Chinese smokes are available for €25 a carton (200)
Im approximately 18 months cigarette free.
Personally I find these increases disgraceful.
I’m not one of these ex smokers that blab such s€€€ like “each one of them takes bla bla off you life” or eugh their disgusting.
Surprised.
The reason why I find this increase disgraceful is 1/ The amount of tax imposed on the product by the government and 2/ Pensioners, some of them have worked hard all their lives and now live on the state pension, these increases are alright for a working person but the pensioner will go without an item such as clothing or heating to get their cigarettes.
So to all you ex or anti smokers who gloat about this, think a little harder not harsher.
At least we’ll get some of that welfare rise back….
The people selling smokes on the street will love this as they are going to have a lot more cash in their pockets.
12 euro a pack? I would expect each cigarette to be laced with cocaine for that kind of money.
Every year its the same targets…why not put the price of a pint up to €12…alcohol is more a problem in this country than smoking. If someone wants to smoke its their choice. Whoever keeps saying to put up the price of cigarettes obvioulys never worked in hotels. This country is a joke!! Its already the most expensive for everything…they will just start turning tourists away next!
Gave up the flags on the 20th Feb, haven’t saved a penny, what ever I spent on fags I now eat that amount extra and more lol, as far as I am concerned they didn’t put them up enough, put a €5 increase on them and ban public smoking everywhere, hell just ban smoking, and if anyone caught selling on the black market it’s 20 years minimum
@Mick Hannigan: vote for mick “the ban” hannigan
@Mick Hannigan: that’s just silly talk
@Andrew Mockler: also ban you from commenting lol :)
@jagmerc: get back in your sad box
@Mick Hannigan: very arsh, Mick, very arsh.
Time to quit smoking i think,not going to pay 12 euro for a packet of cigarettes. 100 euro a week over the next 9 months would give me a nice family holiday.
@Doung O Driscoll: The book is very good and works for many people . The pharma industry is inclined to highlight the difficulty with nicotine addiction in order to push more nicotine via patches,chewing gum and what have you but the book will make you laugh and once you close the book you don’t even want to smoke -
@Doung O Driscoll: I gave them up when they put Benson and Hedges up to 1.50 a packet….f
eck it I said, I aint payi g that, and havnt had a fag since all those years ago now
I am off them nearly a year . Up a few lbs but happy i did it .
€0.60 a cigarette now with six puffs per cigarette equating to 10cent per puff.
Very few smokers left now – either in the ground or quit
I last my job last month. I was in the social welfare office to arrange payment of an overpayment last year when I started work, and I told them when they asked that I didn’t expect to be entitled to dole sice I quit a job but I was encouraged to, as it could stand against me to have a gap. Somebody like me shouldn’t be getting the dole. I quit my job!
@M: idiot
@M: If you feel bad about it you could always give the money to a charity or homeless shelter and live on fresh air until you find another job.
Baxtards.
They’ll never force me to quit, never! I love me fags i do.
Value the health of our nation,by taxing everything to the fking hilt.
They could make a tax of € 0.05 per posted comment and €0.01 per thumbs up on the journal.ie and eliminate cigarette, soft drink and likely liquor and ale tales, plus no water charges. Surely that would work out?
have your say