HOURICAN STAYS AT BANK OF CYPRUS - Irish man John Hourican has had his contract as group chief executive of Bank of Cyprus extended until December 31st, 2018.
He has been in the role since 2013 and his term was due to expire in February 2018. In a statement, the board of the bank thanked Mr Hourican for his "valuable contribution to the group over the past three years" and wished him "every success" in his new term with the company. Mr Hourican resigned from the Cypriot bank in 2015 to return to Ireland where his family was based, but he later reversed this decision. His time with the Cypriot bank has involved rebuilding the institution following a national debt crisis on the island, says the Irish Times. He previously spent 16 years in various roles with Royal Bank of Scotland, latterly as head of global banking and markets division, having also worked for accounting and consulting firm PwC. Mr Hourican’s decision to extend his stay in Cyprus takes him out of the running to possibly succeed Richie Boucher as chief executive of Bank of Ireland. Mr Boucher plans to retire from the bank later this year, with the board last week announcing that it would conduct a process to identify a suitable successor.
***
2,000 TAXPAYERS CALL REVENUE HELPLINE IN OFFSHORE CRACKDOWN - With only a month left for taxpayers to make voluntary disclosures about offshore assets, there's likely to be a surge in calls to the Revenue Commissioners' dedicated helpline in coming weeks.
Revenue Commissioners said yesterday that about 2,000 calls have so far been made to its helpline, which was established after Finance Minister Michael Noonan announced in his October Budget that the Government was committed to weeding out taxpayers who are currently non-compliant. The campaign to encourage taxpayers to reveal undeclared or under-declared offshore assets is a final chance for people to make voluntary disclosures and receive lower penalties than they will after an April 30 deadline for coming clean, says the Irish Independent. The Revenue Commissioners wrote to about 500,000 self-assessed taxpayers earlier this year, urging them to reveal any previously undisclosed offshore assets they might have. Those assets could include anything from foreign property and bank accounts, to foreign pensions. Since Mr Noonan announced the tough approach, a small number of taxpayers have already made settlements.
***
MORTGAGE RELIEF BETTER FOR LOWER INCOME HOMEOWNERS - Mortgage relief in Ireland bucks international trends with those on lower incomes benefiting more than those with higher incomes, new research has shown, says the Irish Examiner.
The Economic and Social Research Institute looked at income tax, the universal social charge, and mortgage relief as it examined their impact on the exchequer. Edgar Morgenroth, an associate research professor at the ESRI, said mortgage interest relief, one of the most common income tax reliefs in the past, was notably progressive with those at lower income levels benefiting proportionally more than those at higher income levels. This is despite those at higher income levels benefiting more in absolute terms. "Ireland is different to other countries in that we’re finding mortgage relief a progressive tax, not the other way around. One reason is that Irish people own homes much more than other countries," he stated. The research finds that income tax revenue automatically increases by 2% for every 1% increase in taxable income. For the USC, revenue automatically increases by 1.2% for every 1% increase in taxable income.
***
EXXONMOBIL URGES US TO STAY IN CLIMATE DEAL - ExxonMobil, the largest American oil group, has written to the Trump administration urging it to keep the US in the Paris climate accord agreed at the end of 2015.
In a letter to President Donald Trump's special assistant for international energy and the environment, Exxon argues that the Paris accord is "an effective framework for addressing the risks of climate change". The letter was sent last week, but has emerged as Mr Trump is preparing to announce executive orders beginning a rollback several of Barack Obama’s climate policies, while leaving the question of Paris open. Trump administration officials have said a decision on participation in Paris is still "under discussion", and have been soliciting views from US energy companies, reports the Financial Times. Exxon argues in its letter that there are several reasons for the US to stay in the Paris accord, including the opportunity to support greater use of natural gas, which creates lower carbon dioxide emissions than coal when burnt for power generation. Several other large international oil companies, particularly in Europe, have also backed action to address climate change that could benefit them by boosting demand for gas.
