Dual abode allowance-Perks regime must end

A Minister who stays overnight in a hotel while in Dublin is entitled to claim for maintenance under the dual abode perk, on top of their other expenses claims.

Paying them for the maintenance of the hotel or guesthouse room is a flagrant abuse.

In 2007, the last year for which figures are available, 16 ministers claimed an average of €5,520 each for this tax-free perk, whereas the previous year 15 ministers claimed an average of €6,116 each.

The Commission on Taxation has called for reform of the dual abode allowance. It advocated the ending of the flat rate payment in relation to hotel rooms and called for a cap on payments for second homes.

In the interest of equity the commission has recommended that allowances paid to members of the Oireachtas should be treated under the tax code in the same way as allowances paid to employees generally. To treat such allowances as they have been doing is a perversion of true republicanism. Everybody should be equal under the law, but the politicians have favoured themselves with tax-free perks that have made a mockery of equity and fairness. This must stop.