The Finance Bill has passed all stages in the Dáil. The Government won the vote on the report and final stages by 81 votes to 76. The Bill - which gives legislative effect to the tax increases outlined in the Budget - now goes to the Seanad.
Earlier, Labour's Joan Burton said she welcomed the Government's amendment on bank bonuses. She said she welcomed the introduction of an effective tax of 90% on bonuses over €20,000.
Deputy Burton also welcomed the fact that the provision which would not apply this tax rate to bonuses under €20,000, because she said she was aware of many bank employees who work in call centres where the basic salary can be as low as €10,000 to €15,000 a year.
But the measure sparked a row between Finance Minister Brian Lenihan and Sinn Féin's Pearse Doherty, who said he did not think it was right to allow bankers be paid €20,000 in bonuses, even though he welcomed the fact that a limit had been put on the bonuses.
He said bonuses should be income-linked to cater for those on low incomes in the banks, and that there should a limit to the tax and universal social charge exemption on the amount.
Deputy Doherty went on to say he was concerned that bonuses of over €20,000 would still be paid out, but would be split into €20,000 amounts in order to be eligible for the tax exemption.
The Minister said there was a flaw in what Deputy Doherty said, adding that there would be no bonuses paid in the future to the guaranteed banks. He said these were only retrospective issues in relation to bonuses. The Minister angrily accused the Sinn Féin deputy of looking for cheap headlines.
Later, the Sinn Féin deputy repeated his concern that bonuses could be broken down. Minister Pat Carey said there would be clarification on the point later.
Meanwhile, AIB has responded to comments made by Labour's Joan Burton earlier in the Finance Bill debate. She said she understood that AIB would be paying out €30m to €40m in bonuses next month, to which the bank was committed. AIB said it wanted to make it clear that the bank was not making any such payments.
