Luxembourg, 14/10/2014 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday 14 October, European Commissioner for Taxation Algirdas Semetawelcomed the decision of the Irish authorities to cancel the Double Irish, a tax optimisation technique which allows businesses to create a holding under Irish law. Profit made in Europe is channelled back into this holding in the form of patent or intellectual rights fees. Furthermore, Irish law allows these businesses to have their actual management centre in a different country. Presenting the draft 2015 budget to the national parliament, Irleand's Finance Minister Michael Noonan explained, quoted by the BBC, that as of next year, the tax regime would no longer apply to businesses setting up in Ireland and that it would be phased out by 2020. Welcoming the move, Semeta nonetheless added that the Commission would have to have a look at the details, as it was announced just a few minutes before the Ecofin press conference. “But the intention is a very good one”, he added. Noonan said that he wished to bring in knowledge boxes, a tax regime favourable to patents, better known as patent boxes”. The Code of Conduct group is currently examining these patent boxes. DG Competition at the Commission has also requested information from nine states. The patent box systems “are not wrong per se, but it is important that they comply with fair competition rules”, Semeta explained. (EL)