Funds from today's Apple tax ruling cannot be used for day-to-day spending, the Taoiseach has said.
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) earlier sided with the European Commission in its bid to make Apple pay over €13 billion in back-taxes – meaning Ireland could now be required to accept the funds which have been sitting in an escrow account for eight years.
EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager originally ordered Apple to pay Ireland €13.1bn in 2016 – finding that the country had given companies owned by the US tech giant illegal tax aid.
That aid related to the tax treatment of profits generated by Apple’s activities outside the United States - in particular, two tax ‘rulings’ by Revenue in 1991 and 2007 that, it said, offered Apple an unfair advantage over other corporate taxpayers.
Both Ireland and Apple have been fighting against the order ever since.
In a statement to Newstalk this evening, Simon Harris said we must now carefully consider how best to use the funds for the Irish people and the country.
"Today we have finality on the Apple case. This historical legacy issue has now concluded," he said.
"It is important that we now consider how best to put these funds to use for the Irish people and our country.
"Obviously, one-off resources cannot be used for day-to-day spending but careful consideration should now be given to how best to utilise this for Ireland and the needs of our country."
Mr Harris added that he looks forward to discussing the issue with Government colleagues "soon".
Additional reporting: Teena Gates
