Financial Transparency Coalition

LONDON - New European plans to reveal more about multinationals’ finances will help tackle corruption in the oil, gas and mining industries - but need toughening up if they are also to help poor countries fight multi-billion pound tax dodging, says Christian Aid.

BRUSSELS - Today’s EU proposals are a welcome development in the fight against corruption in resource rich countries, but there is potential to do much more.

On the 22 September, the Committee for Economic and Monetary Affairs (ECON) in the European Parliament passed a report containing both concrete measures and broader statements against the race to the bottom in European corporate taxation, citing the financial strain this is placing on European countries and their citizens. The EU is currently revising the parent-subsidiary directive, with the intention of preventing double or multiple taxation when the profits of a subsidiary are distributed to the parent company or companies. Too often such treaties effectively lead to double-non taxation. To address this the MEPs voted for an amendment to...

In Germany, the Social Democratic Party (SPD) has come out against the deal. Meanwhile, the European Commission has also said it will have to assess the legality of the deals but has not taken a firm position. The final withholding tax concept, known as ‘Rubik,’ was initially formulated by the Association of Foreign Banks in Switzerland (AFBS) and by Swiss banks to protect banking secrecy against the international moves towards automatic tax information exchange, which followed the global financial crisis.

SPD Plans to Block Rubik Ratification in Germany

The SPD’s financial concept note published last Monday rejects the agreement with Switzerland. It is...