Tax take beats target for February

The tax take at the end of February was ahead of target - to the tune of €345m.

Latest exchequer returns show that income tax receipts at the end of last month stood at almost €2.9bn, up over €1.6bn on the same time last year.

VAT, excise duties and stamp duty were also all ahead of target - while corporation tax rose significantly year on year, up €174m to €265m.