Budget 2018 Summary is available in print and/or digital versions as outlined below. To place an order, complete the order form and email to publishing@charteredaccountants.ie or post (with a cheque) to Chartered Accountants Ireland, Chartered Accountants House, 47–49 Pearse Street, Dublin 2. Orders should be received by 11am on Friday 6 October 2017. Order Form You can also place your order over the phone by calling Publishing on (01) 637 7204. Option 1: Budget 2018 Summary – printed version A full-colour A5 publication with space for over-stamping your own name/firm name for distribution to your clients and business contacts. Price, including all handling costs: €24.95 for the first copy with additional copies at €1.80 each (all prices quoted exclude VAT). Printed copies of the Budget 2018 Summary will be posted on Wednesday 11 October 2017, or can be collected from Chartered Accountants House, 47–49 Pearse Street, Dublin 2 after 10am on Wednesday 11 October 2017. Option 2: PDF of Budget 2018 Summary – branded Chartered Accountants Ireland A full-colour PDF version of the Budget 2018 Summary available for you to send to your clients. Simple and hassle-free, this option avoids postage/packaging costs and time lapses. Price: €175 (price excludes VAT). The PDF will be emailed to you on the morning of Wednesday 11 October 2017. Option 3: PDF of Budget 2018 Summary – with your firm’s logo Chartered Accountants Ireland-branded PDF also personalised with your logo and sent to you for emailing to your clients. Price: €295 (price excludes VAT). Your personalised PDF will be emailed to you on the morning of Wednesday 11 October 2017. If opting for this service, please also email your logo in high-resolution PDF format to: publishing@charteredaccountants.ie.

Feedback can be really tough both for the giver and the receiver. If handled badly, with poor preparation and a total lack of emotional intelligence, it can do a lot of damage. However, constructive feedback delivered with integrity and a genuine intention can be the greatest gift you can give to another individual. It can provide significant development opportunities and specific insights into an individual reaching their full potential. Coaching and continuous feedback is listed as a key trend in the Deloitte Human Capital Trends 2017 report, and research conducted by Gallup into millennials (those born between 1980 and 1996) and reported in How Millennials Want to Work and Live highlights their requirement for continuous feedback in order to develop their strengths. Millennials are passionate about their career development and see their managers as coaches who care about it, too.  The relationship between manager and an employee represents a vital link in performance management. Communication and effective influencing is crucial for that relationship to succeed. Regular, constructive feedback is a key facet in leaders/managers developing and nurturing the talent in their teams which drives significant performance improvement. Too often, feedback is stored up and given in an end-of-year performance review as part of the feedback sandwich – praise/criticism/praise. Elements of successful feedback Frequency One of the most significant elements of successful feedback is the frequency. It is so important to keep it regular – ideally on a weekly basis. It does not have to be a very formal process; a simple check-in over coffee can be very effective. Be specific When giving feedback, aim to be as specific as possible. For example, you might refer to an instance where they didn’t participate in a meeting or listen to someone else’s point of view.  Focus on the behaviour, not the person. Refer to the behaviour exhibited only and be sure not to make it seem like a personal attack. Using the SBI model (situations, behaviour, impact) can be really useful and keeps the feedback objective. Trust High levels of trust and respect must exist to give and receive feedback. Be aware of how trust is being nurtured in the overall relationship. Intention The intention of feedback is for the recipient to learn, move forward and become a better employee. It’s rooted in genuine concern for the person – it is not to score points! Emotions  Be aware of emotions during the conversation. Be aware of how you are delivering your message and how the person receiving feedback is taking it. Are they defensive or upset? Acknowledge your intention and the reason for the feedback. Acknowledge their emotions. When an employer feels high levels of trust and the want to develop their career further, they are more likely to receive feedback in a positive way and learn from it. Mutual understanding The objective of providing feedback is to get to a mutual understanding – not to prove someone right or wrong. Identify your contribution to the issue. This will build trust and your ability to influence. BUT  Don’t use the word “BUT” when delivering constructive criticism. When “but” is used in a conversation, it negates everything that was said prior to it! Instead, try to end the conversation with positive reinforcement and a commitment to agreeing the next steps forward. Constructive feedback handled well is the greatest gift both for the giver and receiver. It takes commitment and practice but can be very rewarding.  Fiona Flynn will be delivering the course Improving your Influence Skills at Work in Chartered Accountants House on 4 October.

Did UK MP’s vote for legal certainty on Brexit, or is there trouble brewing? Eoin O’Shea FCA takes a look. Last week, the UK’s House of Commons began debating, in earnest, the initial stages of the European Union (Withdrawal) Bill – the bill designed, legally, to take the UK out of the European Union. Basically, the bill will repeal the European Communities Act 1972 which makes EU law supreme over UK law. However, the bill also proposes, out of necessity, to take all EU law still existing at Brexit date, and transcribe it directly onto the UK’s statute books. Practically speaking, the UK has no choice but to continue with existing EU law (including 12,000 EU regulations) because there simply is not enough time between now and March 2019 to rewrite them.   Brexit secretary, David Davis put the matter succinctly when speaking in the Commons:  “…the Bill takes a snapshot of the body of EU law that currently forms part of the United Kingdom legal system and ensures that it will continue to apply in the United Kingdom after we leave. This is to ensure that, wherever possible, the same rules and laws will apply the day after exit as they did before. Without that step, a large part of our law would fall away when the European Communities Act is repealed.” The bill was, perhaps ironically, first scheduled to be entitled “The Great Repeal Bill”, the aim of which is the preservation, not repeal, of EU law in the UK. However, from the point of view of UK business, the UK legislative approach provides a significant amount of legal certainty and, perhaps more importantly, positions the UK for smoother negotiations with the EU than would be the case if the UK planned to cast aside EU law or, as it was put during the referendum by the Leavers, ‘take back control’. The bill passed its second stage by 326 votes to 290, and it will now be subject to detailed scrutiny in parliamentary committee. MPs have already tabled 157 amendments, including seeking that the terms of any withdrawal agreement between the UK and the EU be agreed in advance by Parliament, that the rights of EU citizens in the UK be protected post-Brexit, and that the UK will stay in the EU single market and the EU customs union after Brexit.  Although the vote (a 36 member majority) was larger than the Prime Minister’s effective majority in the Commons, those proposing amendments to the Bill hope that government MPs can be encouraged to defect and so that, as a result, Brexit can be softened.   Eoin O’Shea FCA is a practising barrister, specialising in commercial and tax law.

A review of Ireland’s corporation tax code, carried out by Seamus Coffey, Chairperson of the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council, was published last week after being sought by Government following the Apple Tax ruling from the European Commission. Joe Tynan, International Tax Partner at PwC, provides some clarity. How would the proposals, if adopted, affect large corporations?  The key message from the report is that Ireland's corporate tax code is fit for purpose in the context of significant international change. For the most part, the proposals recommend that Ireland stays it course along the path it has already chosen to take and as such there are no major surprises.  Large corporations should take note, however, of the transfer pricing (TP), intellectual property (IP) and territorial regime recommendations in particular. The suggestion to adopt the updated 2017 OECD TP guidelines really just tightens the arms length principle such that profits and economic activity are better aligned. However, the extension of the TP rules to non-trading transactions could have a significant impact on large corporations who currently have non trading arrangements that are not at arms length.  Companies with IP in Ireland or who are considering bringing their IP to Ireland could be impacted by the proposal to limit the tax deductible amortisation, and related financing cost, to 80% of the current year income. However, as the allowances could be carried forward indefinitely, the proposal would only have a cash tax, and not book tax impact.  Finally, the introduction of a territorial regime, where by (in general) the profits of subsidiaries are not taxed once  remitted back to Ireland should be welcomed as it would greatly reduce the administration associated with the current cumbersome tax credit calculations.  How would they affect small corporations?  The comments above in relation to IP and territoriality would generally apply to small companies with the necessary fact patterns (i.e. acquired IP or foreign subsidiaries). However, the biggest impact for small corporations is the recommendation to broaden the scope of TP to include SMEs. The current carve-out for companies with a turnover of less than €50m and less than 250 employees is in place to reduce the significant burden of TP documentation on smaller entities which posed less of a BEPS risk. In my opinion, the risk is not sufficient to warrant the measure and Ireland should avoid making any changes that could potentially place an unnecessary additional compliance burden on SMEs in what is already a challenging period given the market uncertainty as a result of Brexit.  Do you think any proposals will be ignored?  I think the government will find it difficult, in this era of new politics, to ignore any proposals in the report. However, Mr Coffey has called for extensive consultation on a number of matters so dependent on the outcome of this process, they may decide against some of the recommendations.  How do they fit in the OECD and G20 strategy for BEPS?  This report fits well within the context of the BEPS project and indeed BEPS related measures being undertaken at the EU. Ireland has been a strong supporter of the OECD's work on BEPS, whose core principal underpins Ireland's economic policy of attracting substance based investment.  How do you think this review and its proposals will be perceived internationally?  I think the report and it's recommendations will add further credibility to the Department of Finance's view that we have an open and transparent regime. The report also focuses on competitiveness and that Ireland will play fair but  will also play to win in terms of being competitive for mobile enterprises. On this basis I believe the report will be viewed positively.  If adopted, when will these recommendations take effect?  There is unlikely to be any Big Bang in terms of changes to our tax code. Ireland is already following a path of reform that has been agreed at both an OECD and EU level and for the most part the report merely recommends staying the course. The report suggest the changes should be implemented by the end of 2020. 

The International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA) released for public comment the Exposure Draft, Proposed Revisions to the Code Pertaining to the Offering and Accepting of Inducements. The proposals strengthen the Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants (the Code) by clarifying the appropriate boundaries for the offering and accepting of inducements, and by prohibiting any inducements with intent to improperly influence behavior. The proposed comprehensive framework covers all forms of inducements and applies to both professional accountants in business and professional accountants in public practice. It also provides enhanced guidance on the offering and accepting of inducements by professional accountants’ immediate or close family members. “Inducements with intent to improperly influence behavior are a very major concern for the public interest, and they include the issues of bribery and corruption. Inducements made with improper intent are unacceptable and should be prohibited,” said IESBA Chairman Dr. Stavros Thomadakis. Among other matters, the proposals also require professional accountants to address any threats to compliance with the fundamental ethical principles in accordance with the Code’s conceptual framework where there is no improper intent. The IESBA invites all stakeholders to comment on the Exposure Draft by visiting the Ethics Board’s website at www.ethicsboard.org. Comments are requested by December 8, 2017.  

The number of professional job vacancies in Ireland reduced by 3% in August compared to the same month a year ago, but were up 7% sequentially since July, according to the Morgan McKinley Ireland Monthly Employment Monitor. There was a 19% increase in the number of professionals seeking jobs in Ireland in August compared to the same month a year ago.  This indicates continuing high levels of mobility and perceived opportunity among the professional workforce and also reflects the nationally low rate of unemployment. There is an increased focus on employee retention, career planning and succession programmes and an overall strengthening of the remuneration and benefits being offered to professionals. The August Employment Monitor figures are consistent with the immediately preceding July where the overall professional jobs market softened significantly due mainly to seasonal factors and following from an intensive period of hiring activity in the professional services recruitment market in the first half of 2017. Overall, there continues to be a high level of stability and opportunity within the professional jobs market.