While this year’s budget was hailed by the government as being the one that ends austerity measures, some residents of Ireland will be hit every Sunday night until next month for their social media usage. Minister for Finance Michel Noonan, revealed during today’s budget hearing that there will be a €1 tax on every Tweet made by a resident of Ireland that contains a reference to RTÉ’s crime drama Love/Hate.
The expected revenue leading up to Christmas of Tweets mentioning the activities of Nidge, Fran, Siobhan, and the rest of the gang, is expected to raise somewhere between €500,000 – €850,000 in additional revue this year.
The Minister for Finance said how the tax will be implemented, “The Government will install Twitter meters outside the homes of every resident in Ireland. When certain phrases or words are Tweeted from the home, the meter will start clocking them.”
“Certain buzzwords will be sought out, such as, ‘I’ve a bone to pick with you’, ‘Nidge Weasel’, ‘Head like a bag of spanners, ‘In all fairness, Siobhan is a ride’, ‘I might start laying down a towel from now on’, and ‘King Nidge’.”
“Once these Tweets have been identified as being Love/Hate related the Government will send each household a bill that correlates with the Twitter meter. Tánaiste Joan Burton will be double-checking the PPS numbers of each Tweeter to make sure that those tweeting are not on welfare while using a smart phone or tablet.”
The new scheme will come into effect this Sunday for the third episode of the current season.