Household Charge, who's paying?

[99_oK?]

You do realise 99, that since the time those figures refer to (before Munster played in their second hec final) that all high earners have to pay a minimum of I think 30% tax on their income. That is the law, one of the few good things that Brian Lenihan managed to do

My comment is based on current situation, as (unfortunately the figures haven't changed much in those years.....

Most middle incomes have been hit though.

Unfortunately, It's still too easy to avoid paying any tax if you're very rich and living here -
Have a mate (until recently working in Revenue....) who says only a fraction of the top 500 earners here pay any tax using 2 loopholes - (non-)residence and setting up companies (sometimes multiples). The first isn't policed, the second is abused (I'm just paraphrasing him). If you're a US citizen you pay minimum tax otherwise you lose the stars and stripes - simple.
There are also the (maybe well intentioned...) exemptions such as artists/writers and horsey business.

I could start naming names, but you already know 'em anyway.

[99_oK?]

Tax revenues v GDP are amongst the lowest in the EU. - were in '08, not anymore........

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...centage_of_GDP

We paid about 1% less than mighty Germany (total tax Vs GDP %) in 2011, but that is (still) changing. We will probably overtake Germany this year (well that is the aim of our govt. - unstated of course). Our taxes are rising fairly rapidly, our GDP isn't doing as well unfortunately. 2008 looked like we were getting away with murder (tax-wise); unfortunately a few got away with a lot worse.

But it's not the total that's hurting people, it's the inequalities. Same people are being targetted all the time. Mr./Ms. Average are the ones paying. If you're on the gravy train you are still laughing, and unfortunately there are many gravy trains still running here.

Times they are a changing fitzy, especially here in Ireland. You should come back here sometime and feel (share...?) the pain.

BTW, apologies about my delayed reply - weather too good over past few weeks.......

[fitzy73]

Where are you getting your figures from??

[99_oK?]

Our very own Dept of Finance - 32.5% (51.6Bn tax take, 159Bn GDP).

Why? You got different figures?

Will be interesting to see what will happen to the 2012 figures. Both tax and GDP could implode if very recent trends continue, but we'll have to wait on those.

[Cowboy]

Headline on the radio that streetlights may need to be turned off due to 39% of Ireland haven't paid the household charge.

[Eamo]

It would be fun to have no streetlights. Buy a torch if you wish with the hc money.One step closer to disrupting the tyranny of Statism.

[cornerboy]

Headline on the radio that streetlights may need to be turned off due to 39% of Ireland haven't paid the household charge.

Dont have any in the development I live in since 2004. Developer / builder refused to put them up.

[cornerboy]

I'm involved in a business which for one reason or anothr owns a private residence. For the last few years the company has paid the NPPR of E200 so the house is on a database. Hadnt paid the household charge on it so got a letter 2 months ago requesting that payment. Decided we're copped so sent off a cheque for E100 plus penalties payable to "Waterford Co Council Household Charge". Two weeks ago I got the cheque back in the post Staing that they couldnt accept it without the completed form which they now enclosed and because the cheque should have been made out to "Household Charge". Mercy......

[99_oK?]

We have the lights but the last stopped working about 6 months ago. Our road hasn't been 'taken in charge' and we had talks with the council about that; said they could do it but would need a full inspection first - which we would pay for. They said cost would be minimal and just to cover admin.

In the meantime got talking with others (in the co.) in similar situations - seems the admin/inspection charge could be as much as €3k per house, we'd have to pay for any fixing e.g. lights (Council would set the cost....) and they'd now own all the public space (paths, roads and green areas). There would be no onus on them to keep the green areas green, + we'd still have to pay to get the grass cut...... heard of Council selling green areas to other developers and allowing building to go ahead..... Spoke to our developer (now retired) and there was a full inspection done when he finished (he paid that too); it passed of course. We're now not so keen to be taken in charge..... An we've spoken to a local sparkie about fixing the lights. Anyone know where you can get a (cheap....) cherrypicker for a few hours?

To me it just seems they have to come up with new ways of fleecing money off us.

[The Last Stand]

Headline on the radio that streetlights may need to be turned off due to 39% of Ireland haven't paid the household charge.

Unfortunately I already have a private household charge - service fees. 2500 pa.

[taz]

Headline on the radio that streetlights may need to be turned off due to 39% of Ireland haven't paid the household charge.

Thats fine,none up my way.

[Viigand]

I preferred it when there were no street lights out my way. Get rid of some and give me a tax cut please. Also, get rid of the civil service and give me a tax cut please.

[McCloud]

Headline on the radio that streetlights may need to be turned off due to 39% of Ireland haven't paid the household charge.

That is due to the amount the government removed from the council grant before they even tried to start implementing the house hold charge. Was listening to the chairperson of some council this morning on the radio and he was talking about it. No street lighting out my way either.

[Cowboy]

If they said they'd put a streetlight outside your door this year for 100 lids I think more would pay it.

Then next season the ton could be put to another thing your community needs.

Of course this flight of fancy is based on the premise we didn't owe the sun moon and stars to our neighbours.

[Viigand]

You are under the false assumption that your tax pays for essential services rather than pay raises for the public sector and nationalising bank debt.

[No. 16]

We don't have any street lights. We live amongst farm land, but we have grown to be quite a "built up" area. Starting in the 1980s it was fairly built up and a lot of the empty spaces were filled in with mini mansions in the kaboom years. There are no plans for street lights. Our road is perpetually pot holed with some monkey with a shovel throwing some tarmac in occasionally. That lasts a little while but sure with the trucks and boy racers going 100 miles an hour down the rural route...

They closed the nearer cop shop. Now our closest an garda siochana is even further away (further away than Henry street is!!)

So I'm proud to have voluntarily contributed our 100 euros to pay for someone else's street light. I have such high expectations of local improvements when we begin paying real substantial property taxes!

[Lemmy]

That McSweeney fellah of the Local Government Gravy Train(TM) is an awful bollix altogether.

[Waterfordlad]

Wrong thread

[bazzyg]

I never bothered paying the charge, no reason other than pure laziness. I have not received any notices yet , Should I have got something demanding payment by now?

[Eamo]

County manager for cork on nt today justifying his 162k a year (more than Cameron or Spanish pm) in the (non) light of threatened cuts.

[The Last Stand]

County manager for cork on nt today justifying his 162k a year (more than Cameron or Spanish pm) in the (non) light of threatened cuts.

Not sure comparison to cameron is fair. He has two houses, all expenses paid and transport. And his salary is actually £142k. At today's an post exchange rate that is €186k.

Also, why not compare to the prime minister of Singapore who gets paid over €1.5m?

By all means public sector salaries need to be looked at but should be compared like for like with similar management positions in the Irish private sector - how many employees? Pension pots? Expenditure? Etc

[Eamo]

I guess my point is if you are broke and unable to honour your contract with your clients you might think about cutting your cost base a little before asking your client to stump up

Oh and as a former resident and taxpayer (at top rate 10pc) of Singapore their government guys are worth every penny.

[Old Dog]

County manager for cork on nt today justifying his 162k a year (more than Cameron or Spanish pm) in the (non) light of threatened cuts.

Bloody fool. It's not his job to justify it - that's the job of the clown who decreed that €162K was the rate for the job.

[The Last Stand]

Bloody fool. It's not his job to justify it - that's the job of the clown who decreed that €162K was the rate for the job.

Was that clown Michael Buckley?

[Old Dog]

Was that clown Michael Buckley?

It was indeed.

Another faceless man who should be near the top of the bollix index on an adjacent thread.

[fitzy73]

FINANCE Minister Michael
Noonan is facing a series of major headaches in his urgent drive to get the
new property tax introduced on time.

Mr Noonan admitted for the first time last night
that PAYE
workers will have the tax deducted direct from their pay packets.

But the prospect of wages being targeted at source raised a whole new series
of problems, including:

- Concerns that farmers and the self-employed may be able to work the system
to avoid paying the controversial new tax.

- Questions about how the tax might be collected from pensioners and others
who are not earning a wage.

- Uncertainty about how the Government will measure the value of a person's
land or property.

- Fears that if the tax is not introduced in January, then it will be
backdated so taxpayers face higher payments during the second half of 2013.

- Opposition from city dwellers who may face a higher rate of tax for smaller
houses than those in the country.

More

http://www.independent.ie/business/p...d-3213307.html

[John Cooper Clarke]

That is a nasty development. If the authorities simply place a valaution on a property, they'll can then levy the tax and just instruct Revenue issue revised PAYE tax credits. Boom the money is gone.

[Old Dog]

Paid my septic tank registration charge last week - it cost me all of €5. The website for registering is the quaintly named 'protect our water dot ie'

If you don't register before 28 September, then the slurry hits the windmill and the fee goes up to €50.

https://www.protectourwater.ie/Register.aspx

[NiallGK]

Any idea what the story is for a situation like my own where twenty houses are serviced by a single septic tank (located on a neighbours property)?

Do all houses pay €5 each?

EDIT: Just found out on the EPA site that all houses are liable for the charge. That's a handy €100 for the revenue.

[No. 16]

FINANCE Minister Michael
Noonan is facing a series of major headaches in his urgent drive to get the
new property tax introduced on time.

Mr Noonan admitted for the first time last night
that PAYE
workers will have the tax deducted direct from their pay packets.

But the prospect of wages being targeted at source raised a whole new series
of problems, including:

- Concerns that farmers and the self-employed may be able to work the system
to avoid paying the controversial new tax.

- Questions about how the tax might be collected from pensioners and others
who are not earning a wage.

- Uncertainty about how the Government will measure the value of a person's
land or property.

- Fears that if the tax is not introduced in January, then it will be
backdated so taxpayers face higher payments during the second half of 2013.

- Opposition from city dwellers who may face a higher rate of tax for smaller
houses than those in the country.

More

http://www.independent.ie/business/p...d-3213307.html

City dwellers should pay more than rural. Where I live there are no street lights, bus stops, foot paths, police! Sure a house would be burnt to the ground before the fires services ever got there. We're lucky if a pot hole gets filled in...eventually and temporarily. City dwellers can actually witness their tax dollars at work. I live in a detached house on a bit of land, but there's no reason I should be paying more tax than a person living in a small semi-D, near a playground, on a road with speed bumps, and cycle paths, and footpaths kids can walk safely on, with street lights.