A petition, with over 100,000 signatures so far, begins like this. "Google isn’t paying its taxes. The multi-billion dollar corporation has been under scrutiny for shifting using shell companies in Bermuda, Ireland and elsewhere to shelter at least $33 billion of revenue. … [Read more...]
Tax and corporate responsibility
Stop press: large U.S. multinational decides to pay some tax
As expert after expert - and citizen after citizen - agrees: the international tax system is broken. Multinational corporations run rings around even the most sophisticated and well-resourced tax authorities, producing democracy-killing results such as the fact that General Electric paid a minus 11 … [Read more...]
Pfizer and Astrazeneca merger shows US and UK both lose from UK’s predatory tax regime
Update: see this must-read post from Citizens for Tax Justice in the U.S., entitled Why Does Pfizer Want to Renounce Its Citizenship? From Tax Research UK: "The financial press is full of stories about Pfizer this morning, and its planned takeover of Astrazeneca. A recurring theme is the tax … [Read more...]
Mailbox companies and human rights: the Dutch connection
From our colleagues at SOMO in the Netherlands, an excellent article translated from the original in the Volkskrant newspaper. While it focuses on the Netherlands, it is another sign of the growing global awareness of the links between human rights and tax haven and secrecy jurisdiction abuses. Read … [Read more...]
Barclay promoting tax havens: protest at its AGM
Tomorrow (Thursday) Barclays Bank holds its Annual General Meeting in London. This will mark the culmination of ActionAid's ‘Clean Up Barclays’ campaign, which focuses on the bank’s promotion of the use of tax havens – notably Mauritius – for multinational companies looking to invest in Africa. … [Read more...]
Reports: the sorry state of U.S. tax dodging multinationals
Two major reports are worth highlighting here. First, and most recently, from the U.S. Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations (via Senator Carl Levin), a report on tax avoidance by U.S. multinational Caterpillar: "Caterpillar Inc., an American manufacturing icon, used a wholly owned Swiss … [Read more...]
Shareholders to get chance to vote on Google’s tax policy at AGM
From Responsible Investor, a story about a shareholder resolution about Google’s tax strategies has been placed by a group of responsible investors onto the agenda of its forthcoming annual shareholder meeting. "The proposal calls on the company’s board to “adopt a set of principles to address the … [Read more...]
TJN response: the UK Law Commission and investment intermediaries
PRESS RELEASE The UK Law Commission consultation on the fiduciary duties of investment intermediaries: Response from the Tax Justice Network … [Read more...]
Survey: the corporate tax debate is biting the corporations
From tax advisers Taxand, who have just conducted a global survey of corporate Chief Finance Officers (CFOs): 76% of survey respondents said that the exposure in the media of corporate tax planning activity has a detrimental impact on a company’s reputation 31% said that the intense media … [Read more...]
Credit Suisse: industrial scale corruption in Switzerland
From The Guardian: "Senators Carl Levin and John McCain had harsh words for the Justice Department and the Swiss government, too, as they released a 178-page permanent subcommittee on investigation (PSI) report into offshore tax avoidance. … [Read more...]
Fashion retailer’s tax dodges boost European inequality
Bloomberg tax star Jesse Drucker has another fine article out about the Spanish retailer Inditex, the parent of high street retail giant Zara. We would urge you to read it. Among many other things, it contains: "In the past five years, Inditex has shifted almost $2 billion in profits to a tiny … [Read more...]
The Fair Tax Mark – coming to the UK
Richard Murphy and Ethical Consumer today launch the Fair Tax Mark: "The world’s first independent accreditation scheme to address the issue of responsible tax." … [Read more...]
Links Feb 7
Delayed European Parliament vote crucial for corporate transparency Eurodad See also: Time for action on financial transparency euobserver Bankers take fight over U.S. anti-tax dodge rules to appeals court Reuters … [Read more...]
Quote of the day – Boeing
From Citizens for Tax Justice: "How worried should we be that Boeing argues it should get a tax break for performing safety tests on its new planes? … [Read more...]
