Aidan Regan: The great known unknowns of our corporate tax receipts

Most employed people know how much income tax they will pay next year, and this predictability gives certainty to the public finances. But that is not the case when it comes to multinationals

Tim Cook, chief executive of Apple. The company paid an effective 17 per cent tax on income in 2020, which was much higher than the average 3.5 per cent it was paying between 2010 and 2017. But there is no knowing how much of this tax is paid into the Irish exchequer Picture: Getty

The biggest threat to Ireland’s public finances is not the increase in public borrowing to fund capital investments, but the growing dependence on volatile corporate taxes to fund day-to-day expenditures.

With a growing population, public expenditure on key social investments such as health and education will inevitably increase, and they need to be funded from a predictable tax base.

Corporate tax is equal to €12.5 billion, which amounts to over 20 per cent of total ...