Government under fire as pensioners branded ‘tax cheats’

CALLERS to RTÉ’s Liveline yesterday said the letter warning them of an increased tax liability had frightened the living daylights out of them.

The Government, meanwhile, came under fire for failing to provide pensioners with adequate information on their tax liabilities before letters landed on their doorsteps essentially branding them as “tax cheats”.

Fianna Fáil social protection spokesman Barry Cowen said Finance Minister Michael Noonan should explain when he became aware that 115,000 pensioners owed the Revenue money and why he did not make an effort to explain what was happening before those pensioners received letters from Revenue.

“These 115,000 pensioners have essentially been labelled as tax cheats, despite the fact that vast majority of them had no idea their liabilities had been miscalculated,” he said.

Fine Gael TD Billy Timmins diverted criticism away from the Government and instead attacked the Revenue and Department of Social Protection.

Mr Timmins, a member of the Finance Committee, said he had contacted the chairman of the committee requesting that he hold an immediate meeting with Revenue and the department to discuss the “second pension tax issue.”

The Fine Gael TD said he could not understand why there was not a lead-in information campaign on the issue and said the approach adopted has caused unnecessary concern for many people.

On Liveline, Joan Dennehy from Cork said she had always been very careful about making her income tax returns.

“I passed them onto the Revenue Commissioners who I expected would compute my tax liability on the figures supplied.

“I did not make a mistake. The Revenue Commissioners have made a mistake and I feel they should be liable,” she told Joe Duffy.

“I cannot see why now I have to turn around and pay for their mistake. I signed a declaration and they acknowledged my return of income and have given me a balancing statement.”

Ms Dennehy said she declared that she had an invalidity pension as well as a private pension from the moment she got it nine years ago.

Ms Dennehy said she could put up with having to pay more tax from this month but would not be able to meet a tax bill of €30,000 or more to cover tax owed over a six-year period. She was angry that pensioners like her were being blamed for the mistake because they did not check their balancing statement and tax credits.