STORM EMMA TO COST INSURERS €39m - Damage caused by Storm Emma, which collided with the "Beast from the East" weather system earlier this year, is estimated to have cost Irish insurers €39 million.
The figure, provided to The Irish Times by industry body Insurance Ireland, is below the €45 million estimated final tally for successful insurance claims stemming from Storm Ophelia, which struck Ireland last October. The east of Ireland bore the brunt of Storm Emma when it combined with the "Beast from the East", a polar vortex from Siberia, to result in the heaviest snowfall in Ireland in 50 years and virtual lockdown in large parts of the State. Last Month, FBD Holdings, Ireland's only indigenous, publicly-quoted insurer, said in a trading update that Storm Emma would result in a net loss to the company of just under €7 million. It said on May 5th that it had received over 1,200 claims to date, predominantly in the east and south of the country, as a result of the damage caused by the weather event. FBD said at the time that its own catastrophe property reinsurance programme had worked well to protect the company and mitigate the net impact of the storm. Storm Emma is well down the table of most costly weather events for insurers so far this century. A general freeze across Ireland in January 2010 resulted in €297 million of insured losses, according to figures previously provided by Insurance Ireland.
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MOST WORKERS ARE IN FAVOUR OF HIGHER INCOME TAXES, BUT JUST FOR THOSE WITH BIG SALARIES - A majority of taxpayers are in favour of higher income taxes - as long as someone else pays. There is broad enthusiasm for a wealth tax, according to a poll by Taxback.com.
This could take the form of a third income-tax rate to be imposed on those on higher incomes. The findings are despite the fact that those earning more than €100,000 paid half of the income tax collected in 2017. The survey of 1,700 people found that 65% of those who responded agreed that there should be a wealth tax imposed on accumulated wealth. This could take the form of a third, higher income-tax rate, in addition to the 20% and 40% rates, says the Irish Independent. However, when asked if they would be prepared to pay more tax in return for better public services, some 72% said they would not. The reasons advanced for this were that most people feel they already pay enough tax, or because they do not believe that more taxation will result in better services. When asked which assets should be taxed and how often the tax should be due, a majority of the survey respondents favoured taxing land. This was followed by a desire to see more tax on property, with most people also wanting more taxation on share-owning. It found 61% of respondents are in favour of imposing a wealth tax on an annual basis.
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FOOD EXPORTS SURGE 11% to €12.5 BILLION - Irish food and drink exports rose 11% to a record €12.5 billion last year, according to new figures from Bord Bia.
The latest annual report of Bord Bia, which is due to be published shortly, shows 2017 was the eighth consecutive year of growth for exports of Irish food and drink products with sales recorded in 180 overseas markets. Bord Bia attributes the boost of an additional €1.2 billion in sales to increased output in a number of key areas, rising demand in some markets, and to the emergence of new markets for exports which the Irish food board said was in line with its strategy to sell into new markets, writes the Irish Examiner. Bord Bia chairman Dan MacSweeney said the value of exports had now grown by almost 60% or €4.7 billion since 2010. He said the performance was "not only noteworthy but, in many instances, remarkable", surpassing even the most optimistic expectations. Bord Bia chief executive Tara McCarthy, said it was "a year of convincing performances" and "exceptional results". The strongest performer was in dairy, which accounted for a third of all export sales, followed by seafood, pig meat, sheep meat and live animals. However, growth was more modest for edible horticulture due to strong competition as well as for beef, poultry and prepared foods.
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UK HINTS AT STAYING IN EUROPEAN VAT AREA AFTER BREXIT - Britain is taking what a minister has described as an "active role" in shaping new EU value added tax regulations for the 2020s, suggesting the Treasury is planning for the UK to remain inside the bloc's VAT area after the Brexit transition period.
In a letter seen by the Financial Times from Mel Stride, financial secretary to the Treasury, to Charlie Elphicke, MP for Dover, the minister also says: "The government aims to keep VAT processes after EU exit as close as possible to what they are now." If Britain seeks to remain inside the EU VAT area, it will continue to be bound by rules set in Brussels that are ultimately policed by the European Court of Justice, breaking one of Prime Minister Theresa May’s negotiating red lines. If Britain leaves the EU VAT regime, it will need border infrastructure to impose VAT at borders, as what occurs on the Swiss-German border, or accept a loss of control of VAT revenue. The EU VAT area is separate from the bloc’s customs union and single market. One particular area of concern for HM Revenue & Customs is the potential VAT revenue losses from online sales and mail order from the EU after Brexit. Last year the EU agreed a new system to combat fraud and tax avoidance. From 2021, it will set up a system for all online sales in which a condition of sale to EU consumers - whether from inside or outside the EU - will be that online retailers levy VAT on goods in the country of purchase and pass the revenues to the authorities.
