THE PENSION LEVY – NOW WHAT?

It may have been well flagged by www.taxation.ie over the past weeks, but this weekend the front pages of the newspapers eventually caught up. The broadsheets are awash with the backlash generated by the Government’s unprecedented raid on private pensions to fund its Jobs Initiative announced on Tuesday.

The comments and analysis are almost universally hostile. Predictably, The Sunday Independent leads the way with a front-page lead detailing how employees at Bord na Mona are to be given a pay hike at a time when the pension funds of private sector workers are being pillaged.

“The revelation is certain to provoke outrage among workers in the private sector who are already angered that the Government has decided, without precedent, to raid their pension funds,” the newspaper says.

The article also quotes Trinity College law professor Gerry Whyte’s belief the Government proposal might be open to challenge in the Supreme Court on the basis that it could be repugnant to the constitution because it is retrospective.

We have concentrated our review of the Business News on the Pension Levy and it’s implications this week. Contact Anthony Casey of Noone Casey if you require any additional information on the Levy or any other taxation matters.