FF votes down GAA player tax break

FIANNA FÁIL TDs last night voted down a proposal to grant tax breaks to amateur sports stars after lending their moral support to the move earlier in the day.

GAA players made a last ditch attempt to persuade Minister for Finance Charlie McCreevy to introduce a tax concession for high performance amateur athletes.

Legislation introduced in 2002 allows professional sports people to claim back 40% of income tax but amateurs are excluded.

The Gaelic Players Association (GPA) claim this discriminates against a section of sports players who make a large contribution to Ireland's social and cultural identity.

Lobbying TDs and senators in Buswells Hotel, across the road from Leinster House, GPA chief executive Dessie Farrell proposed an annual tax credit of €2,000 each for 6,000 amateur athletes.

Mr McCreevy trenchantly rejected the move as he felt it would open the floodgates for claimants of tax breaks.

The GPA say the overall cost of €12 million would be significantly less than the tax concessions made annually to Irish artists and musicians, and the GPA insists they are equally deserving of the initiative.

After the proposal was rejected last week, yesterday was the players' last chance of an amendment to the Finance Bill.

GAA players and many other amateur athletes work as hard and play to the same levels as professionals, Mr Farrell said.

"We train four or five times a week and perform to high levels but get none of the rewards," the Dublin football star said.

Limerick's Muirish Gavin said the association had handed a letter of protest to the Department of Finance.

"Our proposal was rejected as impractical but it's a spurious argument and we've never been given any real reasons why it wouldn't work," he said.

Last evening, an amendment to the Finance Bill, aimed at granting tax breaks to amateur athletes, put forward by opposition parties was rejected by the Government.

While a significant number of Fianna Fáil TDs attended the GPA briefing to express sympathy and offer their support, when pushed to a vote, FF and the PDs defeated the amendment by 65 votes to 56.