ITI, Coughlan Welcome Irish Interim Budget

by Jason Gorringe, Tax-News.com, London

13 April 2009

The Irish Taxation Institute and the Irish Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment have released contemporaneous statements welcoming measures included within the Irish interim budget to promote Ireland as an international intellectual property hub.

In a statement the Vice-Prime Minister and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Mary Coughlan welcomed the supplementary budget, stating that it represented a fair and balanced approach aimed at stabilising government finances and funding enterprise supports where needed most.

“The budget involved hard choices and difficult decisions. We have chosen to protect the most vulnerable, share the tax burden progressively, prioritise resources to stabilise and grow enterprise, and provide necessary supports and retraining for those seeking employment”, explained Coughlan

The budget made provision for in excess of EUR500 million for capital investment in enterprise through IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland, the County and City Enterprise Boards and Science Foundation Ireland. In doing so, the government has prioritised investment in the most productive sectors of our economy and has invested in the creation of jobs by cementing the foundations of export led recovery and growth.

Coughlan added: “The clear message that this prioritisation sends out to the world is that Ireland is open for business, open for investment and open for job creation by both indigenous enterprise and through foreign direct investment.”

“Today’s budget also provides EUR100 million for the establishment of an Enterprise Stabilisation Fund that will enable our internationally trading companies survive the current global downturn by supporting their drive to reduce costs and gain sales in recession hit overseas markets.”

"Tax changes proposed in the budget have the potential to drive the establishment of Ireland as a hub for the holding and development of non-tangible and intellectual property assets."

“The budget contains an important measure to drive the development of Ireland as a hub for companies engaged in the ownership and development of intellectual property assets. The taxation of these assets plays an important role in Ireland’s attractiveness as an investment location and the introduction of a tax deduction will provide an important pull factor for this type of investment to Ireland, with resulting job gains. This represents a significant step in our supporting the development of a Smart Economy,” added Coughlan.

Concluding, Coughlan said: “In summary, this supplementary budget will:

• Stabilise our public finances by bringing our income and expenditure more in line;
• Restore our damaged banking system and ensure that credit flows to business and consumers;
• Support measures to improve our competitiveness;
• Protect those in employment and help those that have lost jobs;
• Support and stimulate confidence and provide greater certainty to consumers and business;
• Restore our international reputation and give confidence to the international investment community; and
• Reassure people that Ireland remains a good place to do business.”

“The budget sets out the short-term measures required to address the current economic crisis and steers us on a credible medium term path of recovery to 2013.”

The Irish Taxation Institute welcomed the government’s commitment to Ireland’s 12.5% corporation tax rate and its intention to introduce new incentives for intellectual property, effectively setting up the foundation for the creation of an international intellectual property hub in Ireland. The ITI has underlined that measures represent ‘very important messages for both Irish business and foreign direct investment’.

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