Corporation Tax – Page 2 – Slugger O'Toole

The attraction of Ireland to (US) Multinationals – Is it the weather?

Niall MacSuibhne on November 11, 2014, 6:26 pm

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As part of our series of posts on the economy, retired Irish Civil Servant Niall MacSuibhne (formerly the Irish Revenue dept) writes this post on the how the republic attracts so many US Companies to Ireland. “Ireland works.”, a tax director from PwC once said to me. “It isn’t the lowest tax rate around, it isn’t the cheapest location in Europe, but the overall package works. Come to Ireland, you will make money and you will be able to keep most of it.” Ireland clearly …

Why lowering the Corporation Tax rate might be the biggest mistake Stormont ever makes…

Brian O'Neill on November 3, 2014, 1:02 pm

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Before reading this post please note I am not some raging lefty. I have worked for myself my whole life. I personally would benefit from a reduction in Corporation Tax, but as a citizen I think it is completely the wrong strategy. On the Nolan Show this morning it disclosed a DUP proposal to slash public sector jobs and use the savings to fund a cut in Corporation Tax. The idea is that this will boost private sector jobs and …

Corporation Tax powers finally set to be devolved?

Turgon on August 18, 2014, 3:27 pm

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The Belfast Telegraph has a number of articles about the devolution of control over Corporation Tax: with a timeline here. From the Belfast Telegraph: Finance Minister Simon Hamilton said: “I am optimistic that we will get a positive answer from the Prime Minister. “I think that the Government wants to do this and we have made a very robust case to them.” A senior Tory source concurred with this assessment. However, the cost of cutting the tax is likely to …

McCann meets….Simon Hamilton MLA #dup13

David McCann on November 25, 2013, 10:12 pm

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In the second part of my series of interviews with DUP ministers I bring you Simon Hamilton MLA. The youngest of all the DUP ministers he has impressed a number of people with his solid performance in the Department of Finance. On a personal level I found him very impressive and well briefed on the finance file. He opted for an Ed Miliband speaking without notes speech at the DUP conference which seemed to go down well. The interview is …

Peter Robinson: in 50 years’ time the votes of the culturally Irish will help ensure union remains safe

Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) on April 27, 2013, 5:08 pm

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Peter Robinson light-heartedly suggested that DUP’s first ever spring policy conference today in Fermanagh “means that the G8 Summit has now been demoted to the second most important event in Fermanagh this year!” The full speech is available from the DUP website. The DUP leader reassured delegates that Nigel Dodds “will be back at work on Monday and happily he’s been given a clean bill of health”. He hoped that the health scare would “bring about a greater understanding of …

What Northern Ireland really needs is a REAL debate on its economic future…

Mick Fealty on March 27, 2013, 11:38 am

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Why was Sammy Wilson not as keen as some of his unionist colleagues on the Corporation Tax deal? Richard Murphy enumerates the prime reason. Stormont would have to make up the inevitable shortfall… With the banks in regression, and killing off struggling business, no one was taking any chances: …the last thing Northern Ireland needs to be is a tax haven. What it does require is a real debate on what its economic future should look like. And that’s the …

Cameron: “it’s local politicians who have to deliver on that”.

Pete Baker on August 1, 2012, 9:37 pm

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Prime Minister David Cameron was in Northern Ireland today, as part of a UK-wide tour to promote the Olympics. But despite their recent complaints, neither the NI First and deputy First Ministers appear to have been able to schedule a meeting. According to Martina Purdy, The first and deputy first ministers were not on hand to meet the prime minister as both are on holiday. [Both!? At the same time? – Ed] Indeed. And, as I said in slightly different circumstances, that’s why you …

The Problems of Centralised Government: The Ill-considered Constraints on Economic Recovery in Northern Ireland

Of This Island on April 12, 2012, 5:18 pm

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Nobody will argue that the United Kingdom is in choppy financial waters. On March 26, the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development charted the cost of Britain’s recession at a cumulative output loss of £87 billion, or 6% of GDP. All very interesting, but what do cold percentages and unqualified numbers mean for the people of Great Britain and Northern Ireland? The simple answer is a drop in real wages and a critical lack of jobs. The unemployment rate in …

“more to do with their reluctance to take the hard economic decisions…”

Pete Baker on December 23, 2011, 1:36 pm

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As Andy said in his post yesterday Many people were surprised when Sinn Féin did not take the influential Enterprise, Trade and Investment portfolio after last May’s election, even though it was theirs for the taking. I have heard it said that this absence of interest in the economy is partly due to a lack of confidence in economic matters: although the IRA prisoners who became Sinn Féin leaders were famous for their attention to their studies when they were …

Credit crunch, FDI and the late arrival of variable Corporation tax rates…

Mick Fealty on November 21, 2011, 10:24 am

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If there is anything holdling the Republic from the brink, it’s huge residual presence of multinational companies who have sited assets there, as a result of a fairly successful long term foreign direct investment strategy. In today’s Irish News, Tom Kelly asks that the new administration impliment that policy seriously in order to ‘turbo charge’ Northern Ireland’s international offering. With banks continuing to choke capital investment in small scale business as part of their de leveraging efforts, FDI does indeed …

Mainstream media should not abandon their independent judgement before the Grow NI campaign

Brian Walker on May 28, 2011, 10:51 am

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The debate on the future of corporation tax tests the area where NI journalism and comment is at its weakest – business and economics. It also tests of the robustness of editorial independence when commercial judgment is decisively on one side. Naturally business is rampantly in favour – how can turkeys do otherwise than vote for the permanent abolition of Christmas? Companies are clustering round the Grow NI campaign launched by the NI Chamber OF Commerce and backed by the …

More ammo in the corporation tax campaign

Brian Walker on May 27, 2011, 4:53 pm

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It’s becoming like buses. For ages the websites remain dormant, then suddenly another bursts into life. The normally tranquil pages of the NI Economic advisory group carry a new report, “Impact of Reduced Corporation Tax,” with yet more forecasts. You’d almost think a campaign was running. Employment is anticipated to be 58,000 higher by 2030, representing a6.7% increase from the baseline. This represents an average of over 4,500 additional jobs per year in the longer-term, throughout the economy, peaking at …

Scotland is the latest complication for a lower Northern Ireland corporation tax rate

Brian Walker on May 26, 2011, 6:47 pm

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Westminster is in a terrible muddle over devolving corporation tax. The right hand doesn’t know what the left is doing. The UK government gives nominal support to lower corporation tax for Northern Ireland but slaps it down for Scotland. Naturally Alex Salmond was among the first to point out the illogicality of that position and grabbed it for the SNP’s advantage. Lib Dem Bizz Secretary Vince Cable hadn’t heard of the Scotland Bill, it seems. After finding the arguments in …

Treasury says “no way” Scotland is getting lower corpo tax…

Mick Fealty on March 25, 2011, 11:25 am

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John Swiney’s putting up a fight for Scotland to have whatever Northern Ireland bags in terms of its own corporation tax rates. Now it remains to be seen what that is. In fact the Treasury was keen to point out that its new consultation paper “does not make recommendations”. Rather it lays out some of the problems and political conflicts that are likely to arise from varying a business tax within on jurisdiction. If answers cannot be found to those …

The corporation tax debate is finely balanced. Business needs to shape up

Brian Walker on March 25, 2011, 9:57 am

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Claire McNeilly presents a pretty good pull-together of the local debate on lower corporation tax in the Belfast Telegraph. In the FT John Murray Brown does the elementary sums. Assuming corporation tax is cut to the Irish Republic’s rate of 12.5 per cent, the Treasury paper estimates the block grant would have to be cut by £105m in the first year of the adjustment, rising to £270m, or 2.6 per cent of the block grant, after five years The onus …

Differential corporation tax now looks like a definite runner

Brian Walker on March 23, 2011, 2:16 pm

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As Live blog is on standby, it’s worth highlighting that George Osborne has just announced he will take part in a consultation on a lower than a 23% UK corporation tax rate for N Ireland, based on a paper out tomorrow. He emphasises this is due to the “unique” circustances of the Republic’s 12.5% rate (assuming this survives any revised bailout terms intact.) I guess this means lower corporation tax will now really happpen. But when and at what rate? It doesn’t seem like a …

Is corporation tax north and south on the brink of harmonisation?

Brian Walker on March 15, 2011, 8:01 am

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New Irish Finance Minister Michael Noonan’s pitch for more time to pay back the bailout at a steady predictable level seems to have hit deadlock over the sacred cow of 12.5 % corporation tax, the Irish Times’ Arthur Beesley reports. Mr Noonan also said the Government was not for turning on the country’s corporate taxation rate, but French finance minister Christine Lagarde called for a “gesture” in return for lower bailout costs. “Without that we won’t budge on the interest …

“The result is a crisis in European democracy”

Pete Baker on March 14, 2011, 4:06 pm

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On the back of a survey of more than 5,000 people of working age in the UK, Germany, France, Poland and Spain, the Guardian editorialises on the future of the EU. They’re promising a month long series of articles mapping out the social, political and economic terrain. From the Guardian editorial The poll we publish today is taken from a sample of more than 5,000 people of working age in the five leading EU states – Britain, France, Germany, Spain and …

Corporation Tax set to be reduced?

Turgon on March 13, 2011, 4:09 pm

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The BBC is reporting that Northern Ireland will be allowed to cut its rate of corporation tax next year. According to Andrew Neil on the Politics Show: “…the politics show has learned from senior treasury sources that the London government is indeed minded to grant Northern Ireland its wish,” he said. “Although it might not be allowed to go as low as 12.5%, since Ireland is under EU pressure to raise it, any decent cut would make Northern Ireland more …

“To say Ireland is cornered might be to understate the situation.”

Pete Baker on February 5, 2011, 4:38 pm

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No agreement emerged on the details of Germany and France’s proposed “pact for competitiveness” for the eurozone at yesterday’s EU Council meeting. The Irish Times reports “a swathe” of opposition expressed at the meeting, while The Guardian editorialises against the German model – but accepts that the eurozone’s “economic rules do need an overhaul”. The EU Council press release is brief on the topic The economic situation The EU leaders discussed the economic situation in Europe and the eurozone. President Van …