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EVERY MORNING, TheJournal.ie brings you the nine stories you need to know as you kick off your day.
1. #QZ8501: An Air Asia plane with 162 people on board has gone missing in bad weather en-route from Indonesia to Singapore. Air traffic controllers lost contact with flight QZ8501 about an hour after it left Juanda international airport in east Java.
2. #SEA RESCUE: An Italian ferry carrying 466 passengers has caught fire during a journey from Patra in Greece. A rescue operation is under way in dangerous winds.
3. #GIFT TAX: Children could be liable for a gift tax if their parents paid for honeymoons, helped them with mortgage deposits or let them live rent-free in their family’s second home
4. #WITH OR WITHOUT EU: Foreign Affairs Minister Charlie Flanagan has told his UK counterpart that Ireland wants its neighbour to stay in the EU. He made that clear in a meeting with British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond 2 weeks ago, it has been revealed.
5. #WINTER SALES: Retailers are expecting a €250 million boost from their post-Christmas sales, according to Retail Excellence Ireland. It comes after a disappointing sales period in the lead-up to Christmas
6. #THE LUG: Dublin Wicklow Mountain Rescue have warned climbers not to attempt the summit of Lugnaquilla (the Lug) unless they’re comfortable using a map and compass in bad weather. It came after a hiker had to be rescued on Christmas Day
7. #PAYBACK: The government is getting ready to sell its shares in the bailed-out banks to recover at least €17 billion from the money it paid to keep them afloat. The Sunday Business Post reports that the plan would include a “test sell-off” for its AIB shares
8. #HYPOTHECATED: The government has come under fire for a lack of clarity on how the controversial 0.15% levy on pension funds has been spent.
9. #LUXURY CONVERTED: A Celtic tiger-era builder turned his swimming pool into a microbrewery after realising the pool was a luxury he couldn’t afford during the downturn
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That gift tax is a joke. They surely can’t be serious about bringing in that. Even for this government, that’s low.
It’s always been there
These people keep dreaming up new ways to screw people. They all caused the problem that meant parents had to do this, now they’ve found a way to kick them in the nuts for the this and the previous governments stupidity. If you wrote a fictional book describing the events of the last 7 years no one would buy it. They’d consider it too far fetched.
They’ll be taxing homeless beggars next
It won’t be called a tax on the homeless but something like a pavement dwelling temporary charge where you pay by the hour for sleeping in a public area
Gift tax. TD’s second homes. I love it.
I don’t understand the Malaysian link with this plane. It’s an Air Asia flight from Indonesia to Singapore. What’s the Malaysia connection?
Orla a quick search on google tells us that Air Asia is a low cost Malaysian airline.
The gift tax is not new, its been in existence since the 1970s in one form or other and there hasn’t been any significant change lately. AND unless the gift exceeds €3000 in one year it isnt even counted. anything above €3000 in one year is aggregated BUT no tax is payable until the aggregated total exceeds €225,000 so no Ned to panic.
The Revenue are trying to crack down on abuse of the legislation by the very wealthy which one would assume should be applauded.
You forgot the bit where the courts found the independent group to have a anti Sinn Fein bias
have your say