Reduced VAT rate should concentrate on food and catering sectors – Donohoe
Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe has said that the promised VAT reduction for the hospitality sector should be “concentrated on the food and catering” sectors.
Sinn Féin Finance spokesperson Pearse Doherty asked whether the rate would drop to 11% or 9% as no number was specified in the Programme for Government.
The Minister told the Dáil that a 9% VAT rate would be very valuable to certain sectors of the economy and his intention was to deliver such a move.
He said that would be a very significant decision as it would cost €675m in a full year.
Mr Doherty asked whether the rate might change within the first 100 days as promised by Fine Gael during the election campaign.
The Minster said that decisions of that scale should only be confined to Budget day.
He said that while similar decisions had been made outside the Budget process in recent years, that was no longer appropriate.
However he said that dropping the VAT rate would apply from January 1 next year.
Article Source – Reduced VAT rate should concentrate on food and catering sectors – Donohoe – RTE
