The first common EU list of non-cooperative tax jurisdictions is being prepared, Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs, Taxation and Customs Pierre Moscovici said on Tuesday.
“This month, we started the process that will lead – by the end of 2017 – to the first ever common EU list of non-cooperative tax jurisdictions around the world,” Commissioner Moscovici said speaking to Cypriot journalists in Brussels, expressing the belief that this list would not include a European country.
“We do not expect to have a European country included,” he said, adding “we need to apply a common sanction”, of which the ‘name and shame’ is seen as the most effective sanction.
Moscovici mentioned taxation, stressing the significance of the decision on Apple, which he described as a “watershed moment”.
“We have sent out a clear signal that the era of large-scale tax avoidance by multinationals in Europe has ended. It was a decision that reflected a simple principle: that all companies operating in the EU, whatever their origin, whatever their size, must pay their fair share of taxation on the profits they make, when they make those profits,” he said.
More transparent taxation system
Moscovici then described the changes made over the past two years to promote a fairer and more transparent taxation system, in comparison to the practices of the last decade.
The EU Commissioner mentioned that there are agreements at the Council level on anti-tax avoidance, automatic exchange of information on tax rulings, and information on country-to-country reports of multinationals, based on a proposal on public country-to-country reporting.
Moscovici added that agreements have been finalised and signed on the exchange of financial information of EU residents in Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Andorra, and San Marino, with Monaco set to be added.
He also said that there is a requirement all member states put in place central registers on beneficial ownership of all EU companies, which is meant to be implemented as soon as possible.
Moscovici stressed that the battle against tax avoidance is a global one and said that the EU will be relaunching this autumn the proposal on a Common Consolidated Corporate Tax Base, to establish a level-playing field on how large firms calculate their taxes in Europe.
The new CCCTB will meet two key objectives of the Juncker Commission: it will be good for businesses, bad for tax avoidance, he underscored.
He further said that he will present later this autumn a proposal on VAT on digital products. This will align the VAT rules for print and e-publications, so the latter can benefit from reduced VAT rates, just like print publications.
‘Frexit’ an absurd idea
Invited to comment on a possible French exit from the EU in relation to populism and voices in favour of a ‘Frexit’ he described the idea as absurd.
“I am not worried, but I am fighting this absurd idea,” he said.
The Commissioner talked about a crucial moment in EU history, saying that “our future will be defined, for the first time, not by the addition of new members, but by a subtraction.”
The mood here in the Commission is one of realism and determination, he said, expressing the determination to push back against the populists’ destructive agenda, which can only lead Europe to a dead end.
He made special reference to Commission President Jean Claude Juncker’s positive agenda to ensure that Europe both defends and empowers its citizens, noting that “to regain our citizens’ trust we must begin by delivering solutions to their everyday concerns, like jobs and security. In short, to answer the worries that keep them awake at night.”
On the economic challenges the EU faces, he expressed the belief that a lacklustre investment is the absolute priority, and recalled that the Commission has already unlocked 115 billion euros in extra investment since last year, proving to a sceptical public that the plan works. Now, he said, “we aim to unlock half a trillion euros in extra investment by 2020, pledging that this will not stop there.”
He revealed that in the coming months work will get underway on the preparation of the white paper that the Commission will present next March, which will address ways to strengthen and reform the EU’s economic and monetary union. “I intend to contribute actively to this process of reflection,” he concluded.
Source: CNA
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