Government deliberately targeting pensioners for extra tax – Smith

Cavan/Monaghan Fianna Fáil TD Brendan Smith has hit out at the Government for deliberately targeting pensioners for extra tax, factoring it into their Budget in November and failing to warn older people about what was planned. Deputy Smith has said Fine Gael and Labour knew more than a month ago that 115,000 pensioners would be targeted for extra tax, but they still decided not to provide the proper information about this initiative to avoid fear and confusion among older people.

Deputy Smith said: “Since these letters landed on people’s doorsteps last week, I have been contacted by many pensioners and concerned family members across Cavan and Monaghan who are who upset and confused about what this means for them. They have essentially been told with no warning that they may be tax defaulters and they will now have to pay up.

“Who in Government thought it was a good idea to land letter on the doorsteps of 115,000 pensioners just days after Christmas, telling them they are not tax compliant? There was no warning, no explanation and no clarity on what approach will be taken.  At a time when people are already concerned about how they will manage through the year ahead, terrifying them with the label of tax defaulter shows a complete lack of empathy and understanding.

“Fine Gael and Labour promised the Irish people that they would be upfront and honest with them at all times. In this case, the simple truth is that they factored revenue into their Budget a month ago from a planned tax compliance initiative aimed at 115,000 pensioners around the country, but failed to inform the pensioners of what was in the pipeline.

“The Government has been hiding behind the Revenue Commissioners since this controversy erupted last week, but the truth is that Fine Gael and Labour factored an expected tax yield from this initiative into its Budget a month ago. The Government made a political choice not to reveal the details of the initiative at Budget time and instead allowed the Revenue Commissioners to scare the living daylights out of thousands of pensioners around the country last week.

“While everyone has a duty to be fully tax compliant, the way this has been handled has caused widespread confusion and unnecessary fear among pensioners. The Government could have put the full information of the compliance initiative in the public domain as part of the Budget, to allay the concerns of pensioners all over the country. This would have allowed pensioners to be fully informed. Instead, they chose for pensioners to receive an alarming letter from the Revenue out of the blue, watch the reaction and then hide behind revenue officials," said Deputy Smith.

Cavan/Monaghan Fianna Fáil TD Brendan Smith has hit out at the Government for deliberately targeting pensioners for extra tax, factoring it into their Budget in November and failing to warn older people about what was planned. Deputy Smith has said Fine Gael and Labour knew more than a month ago that 115,000 pensioners would be targeted for extra tax, but they still decided not to provide the proper information about this initiative to avoid fear and confusion among older people.

Deputy Smith said: “Since these letters landed on people’s doorsteps last week, I have been contacted by many pensioners and concerned family members across Cavan and Monaghan who are who upset and confused about what this means for them. They have essentially been told with no warning that they may be tax defaulters and they will now have to pay up.

“Who in Government thought it was a good idea to land letter on the doorsteps of 115,000 pensioners just days after Christmas, telling them they are not tax compliant? There was no warning, no explanation and no clarity on what approach will be taken.  At a time when people are already concerned about how they will manage through the year ahead, terrifying them with the label of tax defaulter shows a complete lack of empathy and understanding.

“Fine Gael and Labour promised the Irish people that they would be upfront and honest with them at all times. In this case, the simple truth is that they factored revenue into their Budget a month ago from a planned tax compliance initiative aimed at 115,000 pensioners around the country, but failed to inform the pensioners of what was in the pipeline.

“The Government has been hiding behind the Revenue Commissioners since this controversy erupted last week, but the truth is that Fine Gael and Labour factored an expected tax yield from this initiative into its Budget a month ago. The Government made a political choice not to reveal the details of the initiative at Budget time and instead allowed the Revenue Commissioners to scare the living daylights out of thousands of pensioners around the country last week.

“While everyone has a duty to be fully tax compliant, the way this has been handled has caused widespread confusion and unnecessary fear among pensioners. The Government could have put the full information of the compliance initiative in the public domain as part of the Budget, to allay the concerns of pensioners all over the country. This would have allowed pensioners to be fully informed. Instead, they chose for pensioners to receive an alarming letter from the Revenue out of the blue, watch the reaction and then hide behind revenue officials," said Deputy Smith.