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Mark Stedman/Photocall Ireland

Latest figures show government's tax income ahead of target

The Exchequer Returns for the end of July show the tax take is 2.5 per cent ahead of target, and 9 per cent up on last year.

NEW FIGURES released this evening show the Irish government’s tax take is ahead of the targets set at the start of the year – and significantly ahead of revenues from a year ago.

Exchequer returns for the end of July show that the State has taken in €20.313 billion in taxes in the first seven months of the year – 2.5 per cent, or€500 million, more than it had expected in December’s Budget.

The figures are also about 9 per cent (€1.68 billion) ahead of the take from the same period in 2011 – but even when adjusted for cyclical delays, the tax income is up by about 6.5 per cent.

Though government spending is also ahead of target, at €25.9 billion, it exceeds targets by less (0.8 per cent) than the tax take does. Furthermore, the overspend is well down from the 1.8 per cent at which it stood by the end of June.

Three of the ‘big four’ taxes – income tax, corporation tax, VAT and excise duties – are ahead of target, with corporation tax exceeding the targets by the most. €2.054 billion has been taken in from corporate profits, €313 million more than forecasted.

Income tax is ahead of target by €159 million, at €8.327 billion, while VAT has taken in €87 million more than expected, bringing in just over €6.6 billion to date.

Excise duties have taken in €40 million less than expected, while Capital Acquisitions Tax is down by €10 million and stamp duty revenue is off by €44 million – though the government expects this gap to be closed by September, as late receipts relating to last year’s jobs initiative will have come in by then.

UK’s help in overspending

The Department of Public Expenditure explained the drop in government overspending by saying a payment from the UK’s Department of Health, which was due to come in later in the year, had arrived ahead of schedule.

The net overspend was largely driven by lower-than-expected PRSI income, which was €219 million below expectations at the end of July.

Ireland spent €4.6 billion servicing – that is, paying interest on – its national debts in the first seven months of the year, over €2 billion higher than the figure from last year, though still €152 million less than had been budgeted.

Overall, the Exchequer turned a surplus of €317 million in July – the second time in three months that income had exceeded expenditure.

The Exchequer balance is less than half of what it was a year ago, however – down from €18.9 billion to €9.1 billion, largely as a result of the 2012 promissory note payment and the banking recapitalisation payments from this time last year.

Read: Draghi: ‘The euro is irreversible – but it’s up to politicians to act’

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26 Comments
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    Mute R M
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    Mar 8th 2015, 8:04 AM

    No mention in the article of the false and misleading information provided by Inmarsat, the British satellite company charged with providing evidence re the flights disappearance. Why did this private company provide false information? Very interesting.
    No mention in the article of Boeings refusal to comment on the fly from the ground system believed to be installed on the aircraft which allowed the aircraft to be flown from a computer on the ground and the inherent security problems with the system as outlined in many reports.
    No mention of the powerful military radar at Diego Garcia which would have picked up the airplane and would know where exactly the craft is.

    Stinks of a cover up.

    126
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    Mute Mark Malone
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    Mar 8th 2015, 8:08 AM

    Is that you Frank?

    84
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    Mute R M
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    Mar 8th 2015, 8:18 AM

    Ah no. Along the lines of BLowe and Horgay.

    12
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    Mute Martin Byrne
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    Mar 8th 2015, 8:45 AM

    What about the air traffic recordings of MH17 that still haven’t been released? .The details given of MH370 and MH17 are not what they seem.

    34
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    Mute Jason Culligan
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    Mar 8th 2015, 12:34 PM

    The details were given out a long time ago regarding MH17. The entire recordings have not been released which is standard procedure in an ongoing investigation.

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    Mute Resel
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    Mar 8th 2015, 8:47 AM

    Maybe the plane is in the volcano?

    29
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    Mute Alan Chapman
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    Mar 8th 2015, 8:51 AM

    Breaking news ,,they found volcano’s and mountains! Who comes up with these headlines ?

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    Mute Charles McDonald
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    Mar 8th 2015, 10:07 AM

    Looks more and more like pilot suicide unfortunately. Just did not want to be found.

    Begins turn in ATC in no man’s land where he was handed off and just did not contact the next ATC.

    Flies inch perfect along the Thai to the island of penang and does a hooking turn around the island that would mean taking a long last look at the island where the pilot grew up. Then turns and heads south to watery grave.

    How was he not stopped?? Well Co pilot could have gone to toilet and got locked out. Post 9/11 it’s not easy to get inside. Then he would also have the knowledge to go into avionics bay and start pulling out circuits for transponder. The bay is under cockpit and it’s just pull up trap door.

    This is what happened but of course they can’t confirm this till they find it

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    Mute Martin Byrne
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    Mar 8th 2015, 10:51 AM

    Charles. Wreckage? Bodies?

    7
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    Mute Charles McDonald
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    Mar 8th 2015, 10:59 AM

    Why would their be?? Sure it was weeks before they even began to consider the possibilities. Wreckage becomes waterlogged and goes down. Bodies sink too. You rise up about 7 day mark due to gases but when you sink first and you go 5000 feet down all gasses are pushed out of body. Your not coming back up.

    Other thing was as he had flown it that far and being meticulous he probably tried to land it on water. This would also serve to stop alot of debris so he and the people he would murder would rest together never found.

    Sad but that’s what happened

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    Mute Eugene Walsh
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    Mar 8th 2015, 8:40 AM

    Probably the most bizzare event of 2014.
    That and the trickle down water fiasco!

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    Mute phillius fogg
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    Mar 8th 2015, 11:10 AM

    They’ve found underwater volcanos and cliffs and ridges mining companies must be wetting themselves.

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    Mute Robert Flood
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    Mar 8th 2015, 8:58 AM

    Freescale semiconductor cloaking technology on board. ?

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    Mute trickytrixster
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    Mar 8th 2015, 10:06 AM

    I remember flying back from honeymoon in florida at night and suffering turbulence over the Atlantic, kept thinking about that air France plane that disappeared, there were a few irish people on that plane that flight and I was terrified watching the computer screen that it could be me crashing into the dark ocean to a watery grave,I vowed never to fly again and I never have,I was never a great flyer anyway but that sealed it for me,I’ll never set foot on a plane again

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    Mute trickytrixster
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    Mar 8th 2015, 10:43 AM

    9 red thumbs,must be a lot of Ryanair staff on the journal this morning

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    Mute Frank Higgins
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    Mar 8th 2015, 12:35 PM

    Flying is actually the safest way of travelling

    15
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