No rainbows or pots of gold for Sinn Féin in international corporate tax policy – Carroll MacNeill

Sinn Féin need to stop misleading the public that there is a mysterious pot of gold at the end of the rainbow when it comes to the Apple Tax case, a Fine Gael TD has said.

Deputy Jennifer Carroll MacNeill called on Sinn Féin to get real and drop the reckless rhetoric when it comes to Foreign Direct Investment.

Deputy Carroll MacNeill said: “At the Public Accounts Committee today, it was confirmed there are no rainbows in international corporate tax, and if there are, there are certainly no pots of gold at the end of them.

“The Secretary General of the Department of Finance very clearly stated that the Apple Tax money is not available to be spent in Ireland. It is irresponsible for Sinn Féin, or anybody else for that matter, to repeatedly suggest to the public that this money is somehow available to the Irish exchequer.

“It is a fact that if spent, and the Irish state’s position of retrospective tax certainty is again vindicated in the European Court of Justice, that the Irish state then would become liable for that spend to Apple.

“Ireland would not just look ridiculous, but actually be ridiculous in that scenario. It would also be deeply negligent in the management of our public finances.

“That reputational damage, which is underpinning our capacity to borrow at present, would not be recovered.

“What would be the reaction of international funds, from whom we are borrowing tens of billions of euro to help fund our COVID-19 response, if we were to spend the Apple tax money knowing that we would ultimately be liable for its repayment to Apple?”

Deputy Carroll MacNeill continued: “There is a naivety or wilful recklessness in Sinn Féin about the role of Foreign Direct Investment in Ireland.

“Sinn Féin are perfectly happy to spend the proceeds of the corporate tax and PAYE tax generated by FDIs but do nothing to protect that sector, to protect the tax certainty and retrospective tax certainty that is the principle that Ireland is seeking to defend in the Apple tax case.

“In fact, Sinn Féin regard the vindication of Ireland’s tax certainty case as a ’bad day for the taxpayer’.

“That FDI base in Ireland is providing an employment base and a corporate tax base. The ancillary economic activity this generates is helping to keep the ship afloat in these difficult days.

“Sinn Féin’s populist policies on public finances just don’t add up.

“Their election manifesto was described as dangerous and highly irresponsible by leading economists and their alternative Budget south of the border proposed measures Sinn Féin were unable to implement in the North of Ireland.

“Voters need real solutions and policies and not populist pots of gold at the end of fictional rainbows.”

ENDS

Footage of Deputy Carroll MacNeill at today’s Public Accounts Committee meeting:

The Apple tax money in escrow has never been Ireland's to spend. There is no pot of gold. It is actively negligent for Sinn Féin, or anyone else, to suggest otherwise. Spending it would damage our reputation & capacity to borrow.

Discussed this in PAC today with Dep. of Finance. pic.twitter.com/6mpRcA4OxR

— Jennifer Carroll MacNeill TD (@CarrollJennifer) November 5, 2020