Financial Transparency Coalition

An Op-Ed by the Task Force was published today by Politico on Mitt Romney, Bain Capital, and tax avoidance in Bermuda.

Christian Aid welcomes Ed Miliband’s determination to tackle the tax havens which are harming UK public finances but it urges him to go further, because financial secrecy is a curse for poor countries too. ‘It’s great that Mr Miliband has recognised that tax haven secrecy is damaging people in the UK, by providing a cover for people and companies to hide their wealth and avoid paying the taxes that are so urgently needed,’ said Dr David McNair, Christian Aid’s Principal Adviser on Economic Justice.

Two prominent advocacy groups have released major reports last week exposing unsettling truths about bribery and tax dodging schemes among large corporations in the United States and around the world. Berlin-based Transparency International published its annual Bribe Payers Index on Tuesday, ranking 28 countries on the perceived likelihood of bribery within their companies, followed only days later by the Corporate Tax Payers & Corporate Tax Dodgers 2008-2010 report by Citizens for Tax Justice and the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy.

The EU could adopt a Common Consolidated Corporate Tax Base by early next year. Regrettably, participation will be optional for both member states and companies and no minimum tax rate will be applied, leaving the door open to increased tax competition.