Tánaiste’s tax criticism fights for his ‘people that get up early’
H‘Fairness has to be at the heart of discussions about taxation’
ARD WORK is not a privilege, the fruits of which must be distributed in the name of social solidarity. The recasting of family inheritance as a luxury benefitting only the lucky few, is a cruel political ruse designed to charm the desperate – and it should be fiercely resisted.
That, blessedly, has been happening in the days since the leaking of a report by the Commission on Taxation and Welfare.
This was a sober publication produced by a group at the request of the Government, but if there is an academic justification for suggesting changes to how inheritance may be taxed, its realworld application would be dreadfully unfair.
It chimes with the shameful attempts, led by Sinn Féin, to present family homes as sources of wealth, ripe for harvest.
But it also fits neatly into our age of entitlement, when what’s yours must also be mine.
It has become an article of faith on the left that there are vast reservoirs of unearned wealth in Irish society, and ransacking these supposed treasure troves to pay for reckless fancies finds favour with many voters.
Calls for a wealth tax may be unconvincing but are at least grounded in some logic. There is no comparable basis for any move to substantially reduce the taxfree threshold for inheritance tax.
Some members of the Commission are reported to be aghast at the political reaction to the leaking of their findings. Bless their innocence. Strategically drip-feeding its findings into the public has a twofold benefit for the Government: it allows it to gauge public reaction; and it provides cover in the event of an adverse response, such as the one that greeted the inheritance kite.
Taxation is a complex discussion, but fairness has to be at its heart.
And this is where political engagement is vital because this is an issue on which the squeezed middle need champions.
Leo Varadkar’s pungent dismissal of that proposal as worthy of Sinn Féin was a rare instance of the Fine Gael leader remembering those ‘people who get up early in the morning’.
They need to be defended, but it is unfortunate that people have been caused needless anxiety on an issue that, under any compassionate government, would never see the light of day.
Housing is an emotive subject, and the numerous privations endured by people who are trying to buy their own home have become political fodder.
An unfair tax system would disregard those sacrifices, however, and ultimately render homeownership a pointless ambition.
It’s as if the years of mortgage repayments and local propertytax charges count for nothing when it comes to children inheriting the family home – and this in an era when such inheritance is vital in helping them try and find a home of their own. There is nothing rarefied or indulgent about the vast majority of family homes, and nothing privileged about the children to whom they pass.
That is why designating these homes as wealth is so emotive.
They are not the same as vast bankers’ bonuses or the dizzying salaries paid to executives.
They do appeal as low-hanging fruit to those politicians who promise big and then have to find a way of financing their bloated, baseless pledges. But this won’t do. The efforts of the Commission on Taxation need not be doubted, and future challenges look steep and demand difficult choices.
They cannot include targetting families in this way, though.
And those politicians tempted to do so, now have some idea of the depth of public anger at any move in that direction.
It leaves the populists in a bind. The silent people have found their voice.