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Rich set to flee Ireland fears

Governmnet warned over tax increases

By
ROBERT REYNOLDS,
Irish Central.com

Published Sunday, November 8, 2009, 8:09 AM
Updated Sunday, November 8, 2009, 8:15 AM

 

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Tax warning: Finance Minister Brian Lenihan has been warned that rich may flee Ireland over new tax increases
Tax warning: Finance Minister Brian Lenihan has been warned that rich may flee Ireland over new tax increases
Photo by Photocall Ireland

Government officials have warned Irish Minister for Finance that high earners are likely to flee Ireland if he raises taxes again in the Budget, set for next month.

Currently many key Irish figures including U2 members, and billionaires Denis O'Brien and JP McManus, are personal tax exiles from Ireland and many others are set to establish residencies elsewhere if punitive new tax measures are introduced

The news comes as reports that up to 25 top scientists and researchers who were recruited to come to Ireland are now not coming because of fears about the economy there. The Sunday Independent reports that grants had been approved for 19 of them but have now been shelved.

According to the newspaper, Department of Finance officials are also warning that the emigration of "even a small number" of Irish high-fliers would have "a disastrous effect on the income tax base."

The document outlines how the emigration of even one person earning more than $150,0000 a year would force the government to replace that person with an additional 132 workers in the tax net to make up the loss.

The document states "This means that for the joy of inflicting more pain on one of the highest income earners, we run the risk of having to tax an additional 132 of the lowest-income earners."

In the tax year 1999/2000, the top 4 per cent of income earners paid 33 per cent of the total tax bill.

The document also shows that next year almost 1.8 million people or 80 per cent of the workforce will earn under €50,000 a year, and pay 18 per cent of all income tax.

It states: "Emigration of a very small number of such income earners would have a disastrous effect on the income-tax base that is desperately required to fund public services."

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Posted by dadulus on Aug 20, 2010, 06:05 PM EDT
I am not worried. I left Ireland about 11 months ago and i am not coming back. If ireland is affected well its not my problem anymore, and it should not be a problem in the first place if the goverment was fiscally prudent, instead of sucking up to property developers, and paying bank CEO's etc outrageous salaries.
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Posted by killowen on Aug 18, 2010, 11:05 PM EDT
...... to emulate people like Bill Gates or Steve Jobs and start their own business. ........ Folks who utter thus have no understanding of what it took for Billy Gates launching. His heavily involved in charity Momma would befriend Akers of IBM and as a consequence she convinced Mr. Akers to give her son the DOS contract that led to success. Connectivity with courage is the way.
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Posted by killowen on Aug 03, 2010, 11:01 PM EDT
Kibbutsims the answer. A Collective in each county with three month idea exchanges. Have an army of one's own to protect a land that's going south in a big way. Its over.
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Posted by PolinDeB on Jul 28, 2010, 08:01 PM EDT
End the personal tax haven, as simple as that. If you want to live in Ireland, pay tax in Ireland. If these guys paid tax they would be a lot more concerned and use their incredible clout to ensure the government spent it wisely. Save Ireland first then the world bono.
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Posted by adfloatj23 on Mar 17, 2010, 10:18 AM EDT
If the government had any sense at all, It would allow Companies that employ two or more employees paying their fair share of the tax burden, A lower rate of taxes rather than trying to tax them higher,I guess the school they studied at didn`t teach basic economics, When you drive out big business and high paying tax payers, You are cutting of your nose to spite your face, Hey STUPID if no one is working because we chased out the high earners, Who pays the taxes.
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Posted by Madeleine on Jan 31, 2010, 05:32 AM EST
Driving a big business away is not a good thing during this economic crisis , the rich made their money honsestly and they employ people, no reason to redistribute their wealth to me, I didn't earn it, they did. That's an unfair socialistic practice and like everything else socialism touches, it ruins it.
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Posted by Fran Connor on Jan 29, 2010, 09:53 AM EST
How lucky you are! In 2007, the top 5% in the US paid 60.6% of the income tax burden. The bottom 50% paid 2.9%. Guess which group is complaining? (These are the IRS figures.)
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Posted by IrishAndProud on Jan 14, 2010, 10:32 PM EST
Freethinker, exactly what 'racism and stupidity' are you referring to, on these posts? I trust you were referring to the posts under this article, specifically; I went and looked and could find nothing that would fit that definition...unless I missed something, somewhere. Further, your very first sentence was a contradiction: you supposedly went after 'racism' you saw (again, where?), then before you even got to the end of the sentence you bashed 'uneducated red necks' (meaning, I take it, certain white people). Which is it, freethinker? You're either consistent with not singling out groups of people based on race (or class, or geography, for that matter), or you're not. Now, as for the topic of this article, it is NOT a good thing that the rich are fleeing Ireland; they, after all, are the ones who ultimately employ the bulk of the populace there, or in any truly free-market society. I know it's 'trendy' and 'chic' to bash the rich nowadays (class envy/warfare has always been the weapon of first choice for those who are envious of success and flatly unwiling to work toward it, for themselves...and they find an immediate, willing accomplice in left-leaning governments, always eager to expand their power and thereby assure the economy gets WORSE); however driving the chief source of economic income out of the country in a bid to 'save' the economy sounds just a wee bit contradictory, as well.
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Posted by IrishAndProud on Jan 08, 2010, 02:19 PM EST
Reading the previous posts I find that racism and stupidity are not limited to uneducated red necks here in the states. And to "halfirishann", define socialism. And tell me who is stopping you from practicing your religion? The oldest trick in the book, when you don't have a valid argument make yourself the victim. They are attacking my faith, I can't pray in school, they are attacking my faith, I can't carve the ten commandents on their building.
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Posted by ThomasCoolberth on Dec 26, 2009, 05:58 PM EST
For lovers of freedom, capitalism and Christianity, Ireland may be the better bet in the long haul. The 13% tax rate on corporations will ensure a conitinuous flow of jobs into the country. The prospects for the USA are grim, especially if your skin is white.
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Posted by halfirishann on Dec 21, 2009, 10:53 AM EST
Where is the best place to move so that the taxes are fair and communism and socialism are non-existent? I would like to know! I also want to be able to practice my Catholic religion--and not underground as the Chinese do. MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL!!!
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Posted by kickstar on Dec 13, 2009, 10:42 PM EST
LATEST!!! Rich have Flown.
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Posted by kickstar on Dec 12, 2009, 12:51 AM EST
Ah well the Rich might Flee ...But hey we will still have the Poor
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Posted by Porickseantuny on Dec 11, 2009, 04:54 PM EST
Do the calculations regarding allocation of taxes include calculations of VAT tax? Without determining the VAT % the comments are useless.
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Posted by kickstar on Dec 11, 2009, 06:59 AM EST
'Downunderyan' You must have left there in the 80s like I did Charlie Haughey Didn't become Taoiseach until December 1979, And I remember beef prices doubling in 1980 because of some beef mountain which had to be stored in the EC, So there were Butter mountains Lakes of milk and wine, This was all the talk when I left there in 1981..Oh and the Charvet Shirts issue didn't come up until Haughey's last term office 1987–1992, While I was losing my home in Dublin That I had returned in 88 to buy and my mortgage interest rate went from 9% to 17.5%, Yep tell me about it.
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Posted by Fran Connor on Dec 09, 2009, 11:49 AM EST
Count your lucky stars! In Ireland, the top 4% pay 33% of the total tax bill. In the US, the top 5% paid 60.6% of the total income tax bill, and the bottom 50% paid 2.9%. (And guess which group is complaining!)
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Posted by Madeleine on Nov 28, 2009, 06:01 PM EST
My husband, who is Irish and has Irish relatives in Ireland, were planning on going to Ireland to live if we could, when we saw pictures of Hillary Clinton there discussing business and Henry Kissinger living there, is he Irish? we changed our minds, it seemed like an out of the frying pan into the fire deal to us. We were so depressed . Bono has transferred his business dealings to Holland to avoid paying huge Irish taxes, yet he preaches sharing with the world, he should worry about his own country for a change. I'm sorry you are having these troubles, I saw the hand writing on the wall since this has happened to us. Our taxes are being put in place to just bankrupt this country and they are doing a good job of it while Obama and the rest of his cohorts are living the life of kings while we struggle just to put food on the table. I wish you nothing but the best, you are beautiful people and a beautiful country, I'm sorry I could not come there and enjoy it with you. No one should have to leave their own country to find a better life somewhere else, something is always exchanged in the process, roots, family etc. Flowers always bloom best where planted.
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Posted by Downunderyan on Nov 10, 2009, 05:49 AM EST
I can understand fully why people at the lower end of the income range would want to leave Ireland under the circumstances. My wife and I left Ireland with our two youngsters in the late 1970's because we were being bled to extremity between the exorbitant cost of living and oppressive taxation regime. We were new university (scholarship) graduates attempting to get established. However, similar to the worst of the 'Black '47' era, the best of Irish produce was being exported at highly subsidised prices whilst we at home were paying top price for second and third grade goods. Beef prices went up and up, so we switched to pork which also went up in price, then lamb, then chicken, then fish and finally we switched to cheese. At that stage we were almost vegetarian by coercion. Although we were very patriotic, what destroyed our commitment to 'the cause' of Ireland was to learn that the politicians were milking the system to aggrandise themselves and their mistresses. Charlie Haughey as Taoiseach (Prime Minister) was having hand-made, silk shirts flown in from Paris at 120 pounds a pop, when our family of 4 was struggling to survive on my measley salary of 45 pounds a week. In addition to paying regular Pay As You Earn (PAYE) income tax, further deductions for Social Welfare Insurance (SWI), and later on an additional impost for Pay Related SWI, ensuring that 50% of my pay had been deducted before I ever received it. We never had a chance to rise in circumstances, so we decided reluctantly to take our leave, whilst our contemporaries (some of whom were named in your article) stayed behind to take full advantage of the situation of corrupt and incompetent government. The old saying in the Bible "The poor will always be with us" seemed to be taken as a kind of commandment to keep people down rather than as a resigned reflection on the nature of man.
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Posted by Pat Riley on Nov 09, 2009, 12:00 PM EST
Cut politicians wages!
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Posted by plasticpaddy on Nov 08, 2009, 05:18 PM EST
I was speaking generally, not of one person in particular (bono). Also, they do not have the right to demand where the money is going, the voters do!
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Posted by plasticpaddy on Nov 08, 2009, 05:17 PM EST
I was speaking generally of those who would consider leaving, not about one person (bono), and they do not have the right to deamand where that money is goig, the voters do!
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Posted by irishpenz on Nov 08, 2009, 02:24 PM EST
Unwilling to help out their own country?!?!? Bono from U2 is actually one of the most generous celebrities out there when it comes to donating and "helping." The question isn't whether they're not helping or even whether the taxes are really that high as to be prohibitive. The question is "can I really trust the government to spend my tax money in an efficient and productive way?" If 4% of the population are paying 33% of the taxes, then they have every right to demand where that tax money is going. If it is only propping up an inefficient bureaucracy, then they shouldn't fell ashamed to leave at all.
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Posted by plasticpaddy on Nov 08, 2009, 01:44 PM EST
They should be ashamed of themselves. Already rich and unwilling to help out their own country, I say good riddance.
 


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