BRUSSELS IN CRACKDOWN ON ‘DOUBLE IRISH' TAX LOOPHOLE - Brussels is challenging the “double Irish” tax avoidance measure prized by big US tech and pharma groups, putting pressure on Dublin to close it down or face a full-blown investigation, writes the Financial Times. As part of an ambitious and contentious tax clampdown, Europe’s top competition authority asked Dublin earlier this year to explain the controversial tax system used by the likes of Google, Microsoft, Facebook and Abbott Laboratories. The initial enquiries have signalled that Brussels wants Dublin to call time on the tax gambit, which has helped Ireland become a hub for American tech and pharma giants operating in Europe. Several people familiar with the case say the threat of another full investigation is putting pressure on Michael Noonan, Ireland’s finance minister, as he considers closing the so-called “double Irish” in his 2015 budget on Tuesday. The loophole allows groups to reduce their effective tax bill well below Ireland’s already low 12.5% corporation tax rate. It involves an Irish operating company paying fees for intellectual property to a second, related Irish company, which benefits from tax residence outside Ireland. This exploits different residence rules in US and Irish tax codes, allowing American companies to move profits into havens like Bermuda. Other tax reduction techniques rely on the differences in the way Ireland and the US view partnerships.
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VOTERS WANT TAX CUTS IN BUDGET RATHER THAN IMPROVED PUBLIC SERVICES - More voters would prefer income tax cuts to improved public services in next week’s budget , according to the latest Irish Times/Ipsos MRBI poll. There is also strong support in the poll for a reduction in (or abolition of) water charges and a massive majority want the Government to loosen the purse strings on Tuesday. Asked what one thing they would most like to see if the Government did so, voters responded with a wide range of options. When those replies were grouped, 44% favoured action to improve net incomes, 21% opted for higher spending on services, 33% favoured measures that did not fall into either category and 2% had no opinion. Fine Gael voters were most strongly in favour of action to improve net income through a variety of tax cuts while Sinn Féin voters put the least emphasis on this issue. Fianna Fáil voters most strongly favoured extra spending on services and placed more emphasis on this than Labour or Sinn Féin respondents. 33% of voters referred to a reduction in tax, widening the bands, reducing or abolishing the universal social charge. The reduction in or abolition of property tax was mentioned by 3%, while other tax changes, such as cutting indirect taxes (for example VAT and excise) were mentioned by a small number of voters.
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TRADE AT DUBLIN PORT IS SET TO HAVE A RECORD YEAR - Trade through the country's busiest port has risen more than 7% so far this year in a sign of continued confidence in the economy. Transport of consumer goods, new cars and tourist numbers have grown year-on-year, and the Dublin Port Company said it expects 2014 to be a record year. It comes on the back of further positive data from a separate global survey showing business confidence is at a two-year high in Ireland. And for the first time in four years, businesses around the world are more optimistic than pessimistic about the future. Dublin Port yesterday said total throughput for the year stands at 23.1 million tonnes, a 7.3% increase on the same period in 2009, reflecting that hike in business confidence, says the Irish Independent. To put the figure in context, the company said levels in the same period in 2007 - when the country's economic activity was at its height - reached 23.6 million tonnes. "With growth in trade set to continue in the coming quarter, 2014 is expected to be a record year for trade at Dublin Port," it said in a statement. High levels of growth were recorded for trade vehicles, mostly new cars destined for dealerships around the country, with economic data showing car sales are on the rise. There were 14,802 new trade vehicles in quarter three, up almost 49% on the same quarter last year. The total this year is 58,399, up 30% on the 44,987 that arrived in the first nine months of 2013, and boosting sales at garage forecourts across the country.
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IDA HAS GIVEN UP ON MANY PARTS OF THE COUNTRY, SAYS TD - IDA Ireland "has given up on many parts of the country" even though it punches above its weight in attracting investment into Ireland, writes the Irish Examiner. That was the claim made yesterday by Fianna Fáil jobs spokesman, Dara Calleary when commenting on new figures showing six counties did not host any IDA-sponsored visits by overseas investors for the first nine months of this year. Figures provided to Mr Calleary and Tom Fleming TD by the Enterprise Minister Richard Bruton show the number of site visits by overseas investors increased from 272 from January to September last year to 308 for the same period this year - a jump of 13%. Dublin continues to dominate with 60% or 184 of site visits, but Laois, Longford, Monaghan, Offaly, Roscommon and Wexford were bypassed. Carlow, Cavan, Kerry, Kildare and Mayo only attracted one visit, while Donegal, Leitrim, Meath and Tipperary each had two visits. Cork secured the second highest number of visits at 26, with 21 in Limerick and 16 in Galway.
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TRADE AT DUBLIN PORT IS SET TO HAVE A RECORD YEAR - Trade through the country's busiest port has risen more than 7% so far this year in a sign of continued confidence in the economy. Transport of consumer goods, new cars and tourist numbers have grown year-on-year, and the Dublin Port Company said it expects 2014 to be a record year. It comes on the back of further positive data from a separate global survey showing business confidence is at a two-year high in Ireland. And for the first time in four years, businesses around the world are more optimistic than pessimistic about the future. Dublin Port yesterday said total throughput for the year stands at 23.1 million tonnes, a 7.3% increase on the same period in 2009, reflecting that hike in business confidence, says the Irish Independent. To put the figure in context, the company said levels in the same period in 2007 - when the country's economic activity was at its height - reached 23.6 million tonnes. "With growth in trade set to continue in the coming quarter, 2014 is expected to be a record year for trade at Dublin Port," it said in a statement. High levels of growth were recorded for trade vehicles, mostly new cars destined for dealerships around the country, with economic data showing car sales are on the rise. There were 14,802 new trade vehicles in quarter three, up almost 49% on the same quarter last year. The total this year is 58,399, up 30% on the 44,987 that arrived in the first nine months of 2013, and boosting sales at garage forecourts across the country.
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IDA HAS GIVEN UP ON MANY PARTS OF THE COUNTRY, SAYS TD - IDA Ireland "has given up on many parts of the country" even though it punches above its weight in attracting investment into Ireland, writes the Irish Examiner. That was the claim made yesterday by Fianna Fáil jobs spokesman, Dara Calleary when commenting on new figures showing six counties did not host any IDA-sponsored visits by overseas investors for the first nine months of this year. Figures provided to Mr Calleary and Tom Fleming TD by the Enterprise Minister Richard Bruton show the number of site visits by overseas investors increased from 272 from January to September last year to 308 for the same period this year - a jump of 13%. Dublin continues to dominate with 60% or 184 of site visits, but Laois, Longford, Monaghan, Offaly, Roscommon and Wexford were bypassed. Carlow, Cavan, Kerry, Kildare and Mayo only attracted one visit, while Donegal, Leitrim, Meath and Tipperary each had two visits. Cork secured the second highest number of visits at 26, with 21 in Limerick and 16 in Galway.
