On February 13th, 2017 TJN published a paper titled "Trusts: Weapons of Mass Injustice?", which has attracted critical attention from practitioners and tax havens. This is our response. Our paper, “Trusts: Weapons of Mass Injustice?”[1] asks some deep and searching questions about the role trusts … [Read more...]
Inequality & Democracy
Hurricanes, disaster capitalism, bitcoin and over-reliance on unhelpful economic measures: our Sept 2017 podcast
In edition 69 of our monthly podcast, the September 2017 Taxcast we look at our over-reliance on unhelpful economic measures like Gross Domestic Product and how it constrains us. Also: we discuss hurricanes, tax havens and disaster capitalism the bitcoin bubble - China may be closing its … [Read more...]
KPMG and the false objectivity of the ‘Big Four’
This is cross-posted from Huffington Post, South Africa. It's time to recognise the big four firms for what they are - or we'll continue getting stung, says economist and Chief Executive of the Tax Justice Network, Alex Cobham. And so another international firm providing 'professional services' … [Read more...]
Inequality and the broken economy demonstrated in one graph
UPDATE (please see below for a UK graph) If you ever believed that the inequality levels we're seeing today in most so-called developed economies are inevitable, not so very remarkable, and not as extreme as some might have us believe, economists Thomas Piketty, Emmanuel Saez and Gabriel Zucman … [Read more...]
New Job Openings at TJN: Researcher (African Hub, franco- & anglophone)
Tax Justice Network is recruiting two Africa-based researchers for our Financial Secrecy and Tax Advocacy in Africa (FASTA) project, which the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD) intends to support. … [Read more...]
Historic event on women, human rights and tax justice in Bogota
Last week civil society organisations, researchers, labour union activists and policy makers met in Bogota, Colombia to explore how tax justice issues can ensure governments, multinational corporations and others meet their obligations to women in order to secure their full range of human … [Read more...]
Women’s Rights and Tax Justice: Conference in Bogotá, Colombia
On June 13th, 14th, and 15th, 2017 the Tax Justice Network will be taking part in an important conference of people coming together in Bogotá to discuss the little-understood and under-reported impacts of political decisions on taxation and financial secrecy on women and girls around the … [Read more...]
Evading Tax and Avoiding Tax Evasion: for decades British governments have shied away from tackling cross border crime
Guest blog authored by Dr Michael Woodiwiss (Arts and Cultural Industries, University of the West of England) and Dr Mary Alice Young (Bristol Law School, University of the West of England) In the 1920s, an embryonic tax collecting organisation was steadily growing in the US. The Internal … [Read more...]
The U.K. post-general election: strong, stable and still kind to criminals
The British Prime Minister Theresa May has called a snap general election. We'd like to share with you the thoughts of Dr Mary Alice Young (Bristol Law School, University of the West of England) and Dr Michael Woodiwiss (Arts and Cultural Industries, University of the West of England) on the … [Read more...]
Sweden’s recipe for success: high taxes, strong unions, and equal distribution of wealth
While recent elections in France, U.K. and the U.S.A. have shown the results of globalisation gone bad, Sweden has successfully adapted its development model to make globalisation work for the majority of its people. … [Read more...]
Forthcoming book: Tax Havens and International Human Rights Law
Tax havens cause enormous damage, not least because they block governments from fulfilling their human rights obligations. When rich people and powerful businesses evade paying taxes by using offshore tax havens they deprive states of the revenues they need to deliver on their commitments to … [Read more...]
Why taxation STILL isn’t theft…
It came to our attention recently that a blog written for us by Associate Professor of Philosophy at Central European University Philip Goff prompted extensive discussion. The blog was called No, it’s not your money: why taxation isn’t theft. This concept that taxes paid by individuals and … [Read more...]
New film: The Price of Fairness
This new film, which features TJN Director John Christensen, explores the notion that human beings have an evolutionary tendency towards selfish behaviour and asks whether the widespread dislike of inequality is rooted in the human need for cooperation. … [Read more...]
Corruption in Africa: Misleading index and bribery by foreign companies
By Nico Beckert We are really pleased to publish this blog by Nico Beckert, which returns to a familiar theme for TJN. That is, how perceptions of corruption from Western experts too often hide the real perpetrators of corrupt acts. … [Read more...]
Links Mar 17
The problems with measuring tax systems SPERI 'In debates about tax policy we need to de-emphasise the role of economics and measurement and rekindle the politics'. Blog by TJN's Nicholas Shaxson, author of Treasure Islands: Tax Havens and the Men Who Stole the World. Re-framing tax spillover … [Read more...]
