Sir, - I'm amazed at the meek acceptance by the Irish motoring public of the penal taxation on their professional and domestic needs. For a Government which gives lip service to reducing inflation, the extraction of taxes direct and indirect is a total disgrace and inflationary. The original body which tried to help and protect the motorist, the PMPA, met an untimely and questionable end. The two bodies left, the AA and RAC, are not doing the motorist any favours in this regard, they simply play with words which will not displease the Government and which may somewhat appease their members.
The proposed new "tax" in the form of a toll on new motorways (which should be already built out of tax collected), is a further indication of the Government's attitude in controlling inflation.
The motorist is taxed unfairly in many ways and the Government collects billions as a result, however these billions are diverted from the needs of the motorist who should have top priority on the roads they more than pay for.
There is VAT at 21 per cent and VRT at varying rates up to 90 per cent of the retail price (surely discriminatory), annual road tax far in excess or the EU average and that of our nearest neighbour, the UK. There is a tax on fuel up to 75 per cent which cannot be justified and there is a two per cent tax by way of contribution on insurance policies. Certain fines such as parking and speeding fines are also little more than further taxation. There is then a take from PAYE and PRSI and Corporation Tax on the motor industry in general, this drives up the cost of repairs , tires , insurance and so on.
There is the disgrace of lip service towards safety, but the only contribution from the Government is propaganda on the speeding and drinking issue which creates a public acceptance of increased Garda activity in this area. However, this is used to justify further taxation by way of speeding and other fines given out on usually the safest part of the generally unsafe roads. It does not occur to them, it seems, to spend some of what they take on this important subject in a way that would cut accidents and increase safety when it is obvious that the present policies as regards road safety are a total failure. - Yours, etc.,
M Higgins, Tenerife.