International research by Süddeutsche Zeitung, Le Monde, OCCRP and other media partners reveals with new data that Luxembourg remains a thriving tax haven – even after the LuxLeaks scandal. For the first time, they have made the entire beneficial ownership transparency register for companies and investment funds in Luxembourg completely searchable. More than 250 billionaires […]
EU Rule of Law Mechanism: Von der Leyen’s behavior borders on institutional self-abandonment
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen today commented in the European Parliament on the European Council’s unilateral declaration to postpone the application of the rule of law mechanism. In substance, the Commission President has stuck to the delay of the application of the rule of law mechanism, which she promised to the European Council. […]
Our letter to the Portuguese presidency on the need to prioritise tax justice
Dear interested, The German presidency of the Council of the European Union has been unwilling to bring public tax transparency for multinational companies to a vote, thus blocking the legislative process from going forward. Together with 20 Members of the European Parliament from the Greens/EFA group I have sent the following letter to the Portuguese […]
Success with great consequences: European Ombudswoman criticises award of contract to BlackRock as maladministration
In April 2020, BlackRock was awarded a contract from the Commission to study how the EU can best incorporate environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria in its banking supervision. This decision was met with – to put it kindly – great disbelief, as massive conflicts of interest were ignored by the Commission. BlackRock is a […]
ESMA report on Wirecard reveals deficits at BaFin
Today, 3 November 2020, the European Securities Markets Authority (ESMA) presented its long-awaited report on the role of the German financial supervisor BaFin and the German Financial Reporting Enforcement Panel (FREP) in the Wirecard accounting scandal. In Germany, BaFin and FREP are jointly responsible for the enforcement of financial reporting. ESMA publishes guidelines aimed at […]
European chemicals strategy: Commission presents strong blueprint for transition of the chemical industry
Today, Wednesday, the Commission presented its long-awaited Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability. Almost 20 years after the Commission last presented a comprehensive paper on chemicals policy, today’s publication is intended to pave the way towards a toxic-free environment. The chemicals strategy is the first concrete implementation of the “zero pollution” ambition of the European Green Deal. […]